


Finding the one

by Azaelia623



Category: Original Work
Genre: Costume Parties & Masquerades, F/M, Harems, Multi, Vampires, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-13
Updated: 2018-03-13
Packaged: 2019-03-30 18:18:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 30,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13957281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Azaelia623/pseuds/Azaelia623
Summary: original story working on about supernatural romance. Vampire female with a harem of werewolves looking for the right one out there and out of the harem world, playing matchmaker along the way.Still a work in progress and first time sharing anywhere





	Finding the one

The dark night beckoned to me like my lovers do. The waves down below the villa whispered for me to come and play with them. Wind billowed out the silk curtains I had put up the night before bringing in the outside sea air and all its whispers. How I longed to go outside and sink my toes into the rich sand on the beach below, but there was an arm over my waist trapping me to my bed. I could have easily pried myself out from underneath it but I was too nice and didn’t want to disturb the peaceful sleep. A muffled growl came from the other side of me and then a sigh and soft snore soon followed.  
“Quit squirming or you’re going to wake everyone else on the bed, you know were light sleepers Eve,” came a soft whisper next to my ear followed by a gentle nip on my shoulder.  
“She’s calling me though Ty. You all have had me cooped up here for the past few days, not that I haven’t minded it…but…” I whispered back to him trying not to squirm too much and wake the others.  
A snort came from down around my feet and then “Why do we even bother sleeping if your just gonna talk all night Eve”  
I gave up trying to be nice and sat up in bed pushing the arm off of me “Snuggle with yourselves boys I’m going for a walk”  
I maneuvered my way over those that weren’t gentle sleepers and woke them up and walked to my closet to grab a robe. A short knee length black silk one with red swirls was on top of the other ones so I pulled it on with my back facing the bed. I could hear groans behind me and growls and a large thump. I turned around and belted the robe; someone had fallen off the bed.  
A sandy brown head popped up on the other side of the bed with a sheepish grin on his face, he ran a hand through his hair as he stood up. He walked over to me and my eyes couldn’t help but appreciate his finely chiseled chest and the way the cotton boxers clung in all the right places. “Eyes up here Eve” he chuckled “Would you like for me to accompany you on your walk?” he held out his hand for me his green eyes twinkling.  
I placed my hand in his allowing his warmth to spread from my hand and up my arm. He seemed like he had a fever since he was so hot but that’s just how his kind were. With a gentle tug he pulled me to his side and snaked an arm around my waist and led me from the room.  
“Tired of being with all the other guys Shawn?” I asked him as I leaned into his embrace soaking up more of his warmth. The tile floor was cold beneath my bare feet but Shawn’s warmth helped and I didn’t find myself shivering as I usually did.  
“Nah, the guys are cool, but any chance I can get to have alone time with you I’m there, anyways I wanted to talk to you about something.” His pace slowed down as we reached the door that led to the patio overlooking the beach.  
I stepped away from his embrace and unlocked the door and stepped out into the cool night air. “What did you want to talk about?”  
“I’ve loved being here with you Eve, but I was wondering if I could eventually leave…” he looked down at his bare feet while he waited for me to answer.  
“Shawn… your not my prisoner…I hope I haven’t made you feel that way… why do you want to leave? Have I not treated you good?” I braced myself against the railing almost afraid to hear his response.  
“There’s…someone else…have you ever had that love at first sight feeling?”  
My eyes closed and my heart seemed to crack, that’s what I had been missing, that feeling, the spark, the all-consuming feeling of belonging. My voice hitched, as I responded “No I haven’t”  
Shawn took a step closer to me “Don’t cry Eve, please don’t cry. I haven’t actually met her yet. I’ve seen her in the distance and…she calls to me Eve… I bet she doesn’t even know I exist but I would give my life for her”  
“I’m tougher than that” I lied as I choked back the tears that threatened to spill from my eyes “So why haven’t you introduced yourself to her yet?”  
His face lit up as he pictured his dream girl in his mind “I don’t know how to without frightening her. I don’t think she is like us. Her name is Camy, single mother with a son named Caden, though I’ve never seen him since she walks alone at night along the beach.”  
I looked at him and could see his green eyes looking off in the distance, hoping to catch her out walking. “So she’s a neighbor? How bout I throw a party and invite her along with the whole block so it doesn’t seem awkward?”  
His eyes lit up with that idea, “Really? You’d do that for me?”  
I smiled as the thoughts of a masquerade party danced through my mind. It had been a while since I threw a party and even longer since I had attended a masquerade. I clapped my hands “You’ve given me a perfect reason to throw a party Shawn, a masquerade ball fit for the king and queens. I’ll start on the invitations tomorrow, we’ll plan for a week from now” She stood up on her toes and gave him a kiss on the cheek “go get some sleep, I’m to wound up now and need my walk”  
He wrapped his arms around me and swirled me around “Eve you’re the best!” he gently set me down “sure you don’t want company?”  
“Positive. I’m a big girl, remember” I smiled and flashed a little fang and winked at him.  
“Don’t stay out to late and watch out for the rest of the monsters” he winked back at me and headed back inside, his steps with a bounce to them.

I wanted that feeling that he was experiencing, craved it like the nectar of life that I needed to live. The wind caressed my legs and seemed to tug at them. I smiled and headed down the stairs to the sand that looked like diamonds and gold in the moonlight. Lightning bugs flickered throughout the night dancing through the dunes to the oceans melody.  
I let my mind wander through the past masquerade balls I had attended and pictured all the elaborate masks I had worn and the gowns that had been custom made for me. With this modern world I should be able to do something way more extravagant than I had ever done before.  
The sand grew damp as I drew closer to the waters edge. I stood there as the warm water kissed my toes repeatedly like one of my lovers did. The wind ruffled the bottom of my robe and brushed against my thighs and wove its way through my hair hanging from my ponytail. Nighttime always had better suited me; the world seemed more alive as well at night.  
My world seemed so topsy-turvy these days, so unstable. All I wanted was to find that one special guy. Instead I’ve handed my heart out to 5 men, who’ve come to me willingly and have stayed with me for the past several years. I’m not complaining though they have made me very happy in their each own special way.  
I gazed out over the water, the moonlight making it sparkle and inviting. It had been a while since I had swum in its blue waters. A quick look around revealed that I was alone, perfect for what I had planned. With a quick flick of my wrist the robe was untied and flapping in the wind. Normally one of the guys would be pulling the robe off of me but for once I was alone. I pulled the robe off and tossed it behind me and unbound my hair.  
My pulse sped up at the thought of being caught naked by someone else other than my men. My burgundy hair fell to my lower back in a cascade of loose curls making the paleness of my skin stand out even more than usual. The breeze ruffled my hair revealing the tattoo I had going up my back. Five paw prints; a black one at the bottom followed by red, gray, a brownish black and lastly a sandy gold one.  
The tats were not your usual find. They were not made by human hands. In fact no hands were used at all… As you’ve probaly figured out now I’m not your typical human, I’m vampire. Things happen to me that I can’t explain, the tats being one of them. I first noticed the black paw print after several months with Ty. Hes not human either and I should have known when something about his blood tasted differently. A more wild taste, richer than human blood. He trusted me enough and wanted to be with me as long as I would have him and to show how much he trusted me he shifted in front of me. It was a magnificent sight when he changed for me. He turned into a giant black wolf, his black fur shone with a blue tint and his nose was wet as he nudged my hand. It was later the next day as we were showering that he noticed the paw print.  
“Eve when did you get the tat?” he asked me as he washed my back.  
“What are you talking about, I don’t have any tattoos.” I tried to turn my neck so I could see.  
“Theres a giant black paw print on your lower left backside.” his brow raised and he looked at his hand and after a momen it shifted into a wolfs paw.  
“What are you doing? You can partially shift like that? That’s awesome.” I watched in a trance as he placed his paw on my back.  
“It’s a perfect match. Im surprised you got this without me knowing about it, I’m touched that you did.” He removed his paw from my back and gently cupped my face with it, the pads on his paw felt soft against my skin, his claws careful not to scratch me. He leaned in and gave me a kiss that took my breath away… 

It came to pass that each wolf I gave my heart away to and in turn trusted me enough to shift infront of me earned me a new tat. Thus the five paw prints I had on my back. Recently the sandy golden one that was Shawn’s started fading some wasnt as vibrant as it had been before. I pondered if that was because he had found someone new and would soon be leaving me. Sounded plausable… I shook my head to clear out the memories and walked into the water.  
The sharp shock of the cold water brought me further out of the past memories I had been reliving. I breathed in deep inhaling the salt air letting it fill my lungs. Living by the sea has been good for me, a nice escape from the chaotic city life. I sat down in the water and let out a small gasp and then got accustomed to the water.  
I felt a sharp pain in my hand and picked it up out of the water there was a small slice on my palm, most likely from a broken shell. Normally a cut like that would heal in a matter of seconds but lately these days it took a lot longer to heal, almost human time. The men’s blood was delicious but no longer seemed to give me the strength that I needed, just kept me fed. 

 

The alarm went off blaring loud rock and roll music. A large hand reached out from underneath the dark red covers and smacked it and it went silent. Sunlight peeked in through the curtains finding its way to the bed, purposely trying to wake the heavy sleeper. A growl erupted and then slowly the covers slid down revealing a crop of black hair with a steak of silver in it and bright blue eyes squinting to keep the sun out. He tossed the covers back and revealed bronzed covered skin and a very well defined muscular chest with a soft trail of dark hair going down his chest and around his belly button disappearing underneath black boxers.  
“Fine, fine I’m up, curse you sunlight,” he grumbled out loud. He searched around on his nightstand and found what he was looking for, A golden ring with the face of a woman with emerald eyes. It had been passed down from the men in his family several generations’ worth. There was a legend behind it that peace would come from the woman with green eyes. As many women as he dated that had green eyes, none of them had ever given him any kind of peace.  
The cell phone on the table started to buzz making its way towards the edge of the stand threatening to hit the floor. That would be bad considering it was a very expensive phone and fragile, he made a reach for it and caught it as it went off the edge. He grinned to himself and answered the call.  
“Why the hell are you calling me at this ridiculous hour? I thought we made an agreement to never ever call each other at this hour.” He barked into the phone.  
“Shut up man, you told me to call you. You’ve got a big meeting in a few hours and I know how you like to prep in the morning and get all pretty so stop bitching and get out of bed,” came the reply and then a laugh.  
“Marcus my man you suck. It’s a good thing you’re my best bud or else I would kick your ass. See you at the office and don’t be late.” He said as he got out of bed.  
“Whatever Maveric, I’m always on time you’re the one always late. Just because your CEO doesn’t mean you get to come in late.” The phone line went dead after that and Maveric had to laugh.  
He walked over to the curtains and opened them wide, the sun was out and not a cloud in the sky. It was a gorgeous day and he had an excellent view of the city. The door behind the curtain was already unlocked so he pushed it open and stepped out onto his personal balcony. Pigeons were resting on the wire railing he let out a snarl and they took off into the morning sky. He could see about the entire city from his view up here, one day he told himself he would rule this city.  
His company elevated him to the top of the corporate rankings and made him loved among the people. Since Vampires came out in the world and let themselves be known humans have been afraid, lived in terror of being drained. With his knowledge and his money he came up with the idea of creating a synthetic blood that would sustain a vampire. Business was good these days since the vampires that were still hiding in the woodworks wanted to come out into the world.  
His mind played over his schedule for today, he had the business meeting to attend and then new clients to meet and a tour of the company just to make sure everything was running smoothly and a banquet gala to attend at night. Busy day ahead of him with hopefully a relaxing night. He headed back inside the suite and towards his bathroom, might as well get ready for the day, he didn’t want to disappoint Marcus and show up late to the meeting. Who was he kidding; he loved to antagonize the guy.  
His bathroom was massive, double sinks with professional lighting above the mirrors and black marble counter tops. His shower was big enough for a party to fit in, great for those times when he had them. He grinned thinking about past experiences and then let out a heavy sigh. He wasn’t into the party boy mood anymore, seems he outgrew it though he swore he never would. Plush towels were stacked neatly in a cupboard, he grabbed one and tossed it over a rack and stripped out of his boxers. He turned the faucets on and stepped in under the steaming water.  
He glanced at the ring on his finger wondering if such a woman existed, wondering if he would ever find her. Some days he thought it was just a myth in his family, but when he thought about it, his mother had green eyes, so maybe there was truth behind it. The water soothed out the muscles in his back that were still sore from his workout the day before. He wanted a woman’s hands to be the ones to massage out the kinks he got and just to feel their softness on his skin. He let out a groan and grabbed his body wash, he shouldn’t be thinking about women now that would really cause him to be late.  
Several minutes later he stepped out of the shower and wrapped himself in the towel and dried off. A quick glance in the mirror showed he didn’t need to shave his goatee was still well trimmed and neat. He ran a bit of gel through his hair and then he was good to go. Stupid Marcus saying he primped, that guy primped. He grinned and hung the towel up and walked naked towards his closet. He loved living alone and being able to do as he pleased.  
The closet revealed a large amount of suits and dress shirts and slacks. He chose a crisp white dress shirt and a dark blue blazer to go with it. He had clothes from everywhere, Brioni, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren, and etc. His life was a luxurious one, one that he worked hard for. After dressing he pocketed his cell phone and grabbed his keys.  
He had an apartment that took up an entire floor of the building he owned. He did a lot of the construction himself and hired only the best to do the rest. He had a professional grade kitchen and a private theatre with only high quality electronics among several other high tech and luxurious items. His apartment was his safe haven when things got out of control in the real world.  
The private elevator was at the end of the hall and went straight to the parking garage where his babies were kept. As he rode down the elevator he started to grin as he thought about his vehicles. He had a wide arrangement of cars from a Ferrari to Lamborghini and several others and a Ducati for when he was feeling wild. His favorite car at the moment was his Audi R8 Spyder, The Iron Man car. Though it looked much better when he was behind the wheel. His phone went off again, most likely Marcus trying to find out if he was on his way or not.  
“What,” he said into the phone nor looking at who had called.  
“Do you answer the phone like that every time someone calls you Mister Maveric?” came a heavily southern accented female voice.  
“My apologies, I thought it was my friend calling. How are you doing this fine morning Caroline?” he mentally kicked himself over that mistake.  
“Very well Maveric darling. Calling to make sure your not going to stand me up for tonight’s gala.”  
“It’s on my schedule Caroline I’ll be attending. Were allowed to bring guests right?” Caroline was the event planner for most of the major events he attended. She could be annoying at time but it didn’t do any good to piss her off.  
“Of course Maveric darling. Your welcome to invite guests, this is a gala in honor of you don’t you remember?” She sounded confused.  
“I didn’t forget Caroline. Mark me down for 4 and I will see you tonight, have to run now, big meeting to attend.”  
“See you tonight darling. Don’t forget its formal also so get yourself a tux.” And she hung up the phone.  
Blasted woman thinking he didn’t own a tuxedo. He owned more than one. He opened the door to the Audi and sat down in the comfortable leather seat. The engine roared to life making him smile, he loved this car.  
He peeled out of the parking garage and headed towards work. The building was just about a 20-minute drive but he usually made it in 5 or 10 since he wove his way through traffic at neck breaking speeds. Marcus was surprised that he was still alive at the way he drove and usually refused to ride with him. He zipped into his reserved parking spot and parked his car. A quick glance at this watch showed he had 10 minutes till his meeting, Marcus would be proud. A squeal sounded behind him and a Bugatti Veyron pulled into the parking spot behind him.  
The door opened and out stepped a tall man with cropped brown hair and a trim figure with muscles well defined underneath his gray button up shirt. He grinned at Maveric and headed in his direction “So you managed to beat me here. I’m impressed. Did Caroline call and harass you to about tonight’s gala?”  
“Marcus buddy nice of you to show up. Ya Caroline called me about it. You know who your taking yet?” he gave Marcus a high five and they walked towards the elevator.  
“Thinking Grace, but then I really don’t have to take anyone since you always just pass your women off to me.” He laughed out loud and pressed the up arrow button.  
“Shut up man. Those women start getting on my nerves after the first 10 minutes; I swear sometimes they only come just because it makes them famous for a night. Amber and her sis Jade want to come tonight so think I’ll indulge them. Bring Grace anyways, the more the merrier.” They stepped into the elevator as it opened up and he punched the top floor button.  
“So after the meeting we’ve got some new clients to meet. Sometimes Vamps give me the creeps…Works work though…” Marcus let out a sigh.  
The elevator opened up to the top floor meeting area. People greeted them as they passed by, Maveric made sure that all his employees were treated well and in turn he had a smooth running company.  
“So how long is this meeting? I didn’t eat breakfast.” Maveric whispered to Marcus as they neared the conference room.  
“However long it needs to be. We have to go over numbers, new product ideas, and etcetera etcetera. Order breakfast, I’ll have my flunky go pick it up.”  
“I guess that will work. Steak omelet, hold the veggies. Let’s get this show started.” He opened the door to the conference room as Marcus flagged down his assistant who was silently trailing behind them and told him to go pick up a steak omelet from the cafeteria a few floors down. The assistant scurried off and Marcus headed back and they entered the conference room.  
A giant mahogany table dominated the room with plush chairs lined up along the edges. Pitchers of water sat on top of coasters to catch the condensation that dripped off of them and crystal cups were placed around the table. Sunlight streamed in through the windows and made the crystal cups sparkle and cast small rainbows on the dark wood. There were a few seats already taken and they called out their greetings.  
“Hope you gentlemen don’t mind but I’m having breakfast delivered. Forgot to eat and I’m starving. We can start the meeting once everyone gets here.” Maveric said as he sat at the head of the table. Marcus sat to his right hand side and poured himself a glass of water.  
“Any idea what the product team will have in store for us? I heard they were working on adding tastes to blood. Ought to be interesting, bring in more clientele hopefully and bring more of them out of the woodworks.” Marcus said as he leaned back in his chair and swirled his water in the cup.  
“Not sure, they’ve been busy though. If we can get the formula right for the chocolate blood, we would make an ever-bigger killing. Women would be lining up for miles to get a sample of that.” Maveric said and chuckled.  
The door opened and a few more people walked in and took a seat, soon all the chairs were full and the water glasses were full on the table. Time flew by as ideas were discussed for new products and the year’s earnings and future market were mentioned. By the end of the meeting the table was scattered with papers full of everyone’s ideas to improve the company and possibilities for future products.  
“Gentlemen good job today, till the next meeting we have. Keep up the great work and don’t forget about the gala tonight, you are all welcome. Off to meet new clients.” Maveric said as he pushed back his chair and stood up. Marcus followed suit and they left the room.  
“Well that was productive. So how many new clients do we have to meet? I’d like to grab lunch eventually and then take a walk around.”  
Marcus gestured to his assistant and the young man came running up with a manila folder and handed it off to Marcus. He opened it up and flipped through the papers and photos, “Looks like we’ve got about 5 to meet. Oh she’s a cutie, that ought to be a good meeting.” He passed Maveric the folder containing the new possible clients.  
He looked through the information and smiled also, “Good eye buddy. Well let’s get this started. Are they already in the lobby?”  
“Yes sir” the assistant chimed in.  
“Send the first one in, in about 5 minutes, and drop it with the Sir, I already told you its Maveric.”  
“Yes sir, I mean Maveric” the assistant replied.  
Maveric headed towards his private office and let out a small sigh. Kid was good but still fresh from school and trying to make a good impression. He opened the door to his office and stepped inside and shut the door behind him. He had about 4 minutes to quickly unwind before meeting with new clients. His desk was a dark cherry wood with a faint red tint to it complete with a flat screen touch monitor and a bowl full of M&Ms. One wall held a glass aquarium full of colorful exotic fish and fancy aquarium buildings for them to swim through. The opposite wall had a built in bookcase full of his favorite books and his collection of tiger figurines.  
A rapping sounded on the door “Maveric you ready?” Marcus opened the door and ushered in the first client and then shut the door.  
A tall Caucasian man walked towards the desk and the open seats. “Alexander Quinn, human” he said and sat down.  
“Mr. Quinn, how can I help you today, normally we work with vampires. I have to say this is a first time we’ve had a human requesting to be a client.” Maveric said as he reached for some M&Ms.  
“Well its not actually for me. My wife you see, she was turned a while back, and she wont drink from me. She won’t drink at all…”his eyes got misty “She’s given up on life, and I don’t want to lose her. She’s my everything, my life.” He pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed his eyes “sorry for the waterworks, it’s been a trying time. Can you help me with my request?”  
Maveric’s heart clenched, he hated to see people cry. The words he spoke also, he wanted that, wanted someone to feel that way about him. A quick glance at his ring had him dreaming of a green-eyed woman. “Mr. Quinn, it would be my honor to help out. Why don’t your bring your wife down here next time and we’ll let her pick out what she likes. We have some new products coming out that I’m sure will change her mind about giving up.”  
“Thank you Mr. Archer. I really hope this works and she will accept it. I’ll bring her by soon.” Alexander stood up and offered his hand out for a shake.  
Maveric stood up “Call me Maveric and best of luck Mr. Quinn.” He accepted the handshake and led him to the door.  
Marcus led in the next client and Maveric went through the meet and greet and sold his product, he went through the routine three times. He had one more client to meet, the woman. He popped some more M&M’s in his mouth and went through his schedule again. After this meeting he had a walk through of the company, he never found any issues, and always enjoyed seeing his employees work hard and enjoy what they do. After that he didn’t have much, just prepare for tonight’s gala.  
“Hey El Tigre, snap out of it, there’s a Miss Conner here, she’s your final client.” Marcus said. He ushered in the last client and shut the door. Maveric hadn’t been paying attention to Marcus, he had his back turned to the door and his head leaned back, contemplating the different flavors of M&M’s if they had one or not.  
A throat cleared from behind him and he spun his chair around and tried not to lose his breath. The first thing he noticed was her vibrant emerald eyes.

 

Eve stood there and tried to catch her breath. She felt like a Mac truck had hit her head on. The man in the chair made her body tremble and her mind wander into dangerous areas. She lifted her hand to fan herself and caught herself in mid act and extended it out to him, “Eve Conner, would you like to come to my masquerade party,” she said and then gasped. Did she really just do that! What was she thinking? Had her mind gone to mush?  
He let out a small chuckle and stood up and took her hand. She could have sworn there was a spark when they made contact, “Maveric Archer, and as long as its not tonight, I’d be honored to attend your party” his grip on her hand was strong, but gentle. It sent chills through her body in a good way. “Please have a seat Miss Conner.”  
She practically collapsed into the plush chair next to her. What was going on with her? Her knees felt like jello and her brain was acting like jello. “Pardon my bluntness Mr. Archer, I’m not normally like that.” She closed her eyes and tried to catch her breath.  
“Call me Maveric and I don’t mind one bit. Masquerade party huh? Haven’t been to one of those in ages. When is it?” he sat back down in his chair before his knees went out. He glanced down at his ring and noticed it was brighter than usual. Funny it wasn’t in the suns light, he had the curtains drawn for some of the clientele. He shook his head and looked back at her. She had her eyes closed still her hands had a death grip on her purse handle. Her face lifted up and she brushed a burgundy curl behind her ear, which was decorated with pearl studs.  
Eve curved her red lips in a smile up at him “Maveric it is then. Planning the party for the end of this week. Mask’s required. I actually just got the invitations printed out today,” she opened up her purse and pulled out a black envelope with silver border and handed it to him “here’s your personal invitation” and her smile widened as his hand grazed hers as he took it.  
Maveric fingered the edge of the envelope already anticipating the masquerade party. “So Miss Conner, how can we here at Crimson Cocktails help you out?”  
“Please just call me Eve, Miss Conner sounds too old. I’m in search of something a bit more sustaining and nourishing. I’m not short on blood by any means, but its not… keeping me strong…” she showed him her hand that still had a red welt on it from when she cut herself on the shell “Normally I wouldn’t have a mark like this, but…these days... I’m just not strong anymore, can’t heal myself…”  
His gaze traveled from the welt on her delicate hand to her emerald eyes that looked so sad and defeated. At that moment he wanted to take away her pain. He had never felt like this before for a woman, let alone a vampire. “We may have something in our inventory that may help, something infused with vitamins possibly. I’ll have our product team work on something for you if you’d like.”  
“That sounds wonderful, and I hope that it will help. Well I’m sure you have a full day ahead of you Maveric, I do as well. If you come up with anything, please call me. Look forward to seeing you at the masquerade.” She stood back up on her now not so jello knees and smiled a genuine smile at him.  
“It was a pleasure to meet you Eve. I hope to see you soon again. Allow me to walk you down to your vehicle.” He stood and walked around his desk towards her and held out his arm for her to take.  
“Ever the gentleman I see. Do you offer to walk all your clients to their cars?” She said as she accepted his arm, shuddering lightly at the chills that went through her body as they made contact.  
“To be honest, no. But it’s so rare that I get such a gorgeous woman such as yourself in my office, that I plan on taking advantage and spend as much of the time I can in your presence.” His blue eyes sparkled and a grin lit up his face.  
“Honesty, I appreciate that in a man. Lead away Maveric, my car is in the garage.” She smiled back at him and tried not to collapse again, curse those jello knees.  
He felt her body shudder and bit back a chuckle. He knew how she was feeling now and was glad she agreed to have him walk her to her car, and accepted his arm. It gave him a reason to be super close to her. He turned his head slightly and caught a whiff of her perfume and almost growled. He tried to concentrate on walking and opening the door without making a total fool of himself. The door opened right before he got there and Marcus stood there.  
“Sorry boss, Caroline on line one. She’s ranting again and won’t hang up till she talks to you.” He held out his phone to Maveric and looked apologetically to Eve.  
Maveric frowned “Sorry it will be just a moment” He took the phone from Marcus and stepped away from Eve.  
“Wife?” Eve questioned Marcus. Praying that he said no.  
Marcus grinned “Caroline? His wife?” and he just started laughing. He noticed her shocked look and stopped laughing “Caroline is the event planner for the gala being thrown tonight” he noticed the look of relief that swept through her eyes and smiled.  
“Ah. I know how that goes. That’s why I plan my own parties. I gave Maveric an invitation to my masquerade party, your welcome to join him.” She smiled up at him since he was a good foot taller than her.  
Maveric was walking back towards them looking ready to throw the phone at Marcus. “Take your phone and run buddy. Start the walkthrough without me. I’ll join you after I escort Miss Conner to her car.” He handed phone off to Marcus and then crooked his elbow for Eve. He let out a small sigh of relief when she looped her arm through his.  
“I told Marcus that he was welcome to come to the masquerade. The more the merrier for what I have in mind.” She gave a sly grin and leaned into his body. She couldn’t get enough of his touch, and his smell made her pulse speed up. 

He led her to the elevator and prayed that it was empty, so he could have her in that confined space alone for the ride down to the garage. The smell of her perfume would drive him over the edge though, but it was a risk he was willing to take. He pressed the button and silently prayed. The chime went off and the doors slid open revealing an empty cart. He smiled wickedly and led her in. 

Eve smiled at the empty cart and tried to contain her joy as she followed him in. She would have him all to herself for that brief ride. She should have touched up her makeup and perfume earlier but hadn’t thought that the brains behind this company would be so drop dead handsome. 

 

 

He pushed the ‘G’ button and leaned up against the rail on the back wall and gazed at her. She was wearing a dark blue corset style blouse with a white knee length pencil skirt. The entire outfit accented her curvy body that seemed to beg for him to touch it. Her hair fell to about her waist in loose curls that he could picture spread out across his pillow. It was her eyes though that spoke to him, that vibrant green that reminded him so much of the ring he wore.  
She smiled coyly at him, “So what made you get into this business Maveric?”  
His smile dropped a little bit and a serious one was put in its place, his eyes shifted some as if trying to think of the right thing to say. “Some very close friends of mine were turned against their will and refused to drink blood from a human. They only lasted so long before it finally got to them and they couldn’t even stand being in the sunlight for a matter of seconds. Day that they perished still haunts me, so I sort of started this for their sake, the ones that didn’t want this life. Met a man today whose wife was turned and she didn’t want to live, just the thought that I may be able to do something to help keep her alive and keep them together, makes me sleep better at night.”  
Eve could see the emotions raw on his face. He deeply cared for those people and her kind had taken them away from him. She dropped her head “I’m terribly sorry, my kind was responsible for your pain.” She turned around and put her back to him and hung her head. The elevator chimed and she waited for the doors to slide open.  
“What are you doing?” Maveric stepped forward and pushed the close door button. “Just because some rogue vampire did some nefarious deed doesn’t mean you have to take all that guilt and pile it on your shoulders.” He turned her around and put his finger under her chin and lifted her head up and gazed into her emerald eyes. He could tell the she really did feel responsible for what happened. She closed her eyes to avoid looking at him so he did the only thing he could think of, he lifted her chin higher and kissed her on the lips. His ring flared up for a brief second, but he didn’t notice it since he was to busy kissing Eve. Her lips were like satin beneath his, and a warm fire slowly started building inside him. He stopped before he did something even worse and took a step back. 

Her eyes were wide and her breath was short as she licked her lips subconsciously. Had he really done that? God she wanted more. She almost took a step forward to him but stopped herself. She smiled, “Well that certainly got my mind off of things, Thanks.” She chuckled as his eyes widened and then blushed. She turned around and pushed the door open button and stepped outside the elevator cart. “Was a pleasure meeting you Maveric, see you at the masquerade party.” And she turned and walked towards her car, her hips swaying gently.  
“Pleasure was all mine” he whispered as the door closed behind her. She heard him and grinned from ear to ear. He would probably be calling her before the party. After a quick search through her purse she dug her keys out and pressed the unlock button and the silver Mazda RX8 lights flashed as the car unlocked. She climbed into the car and started up the engine. She needed to go deliver invitations to the rest of the people she planned on inviting. 

As she drove out of the parking lot she flipped down her visor and pulled on shades, the sun was bright out but the tinting on her windows protected her from majority of it. She could handle being in the direct sunlight for a few minutes before it could do her serious damage, but as long as she had some kind of shielding, such as the heavy tinting on her car she could handle it for a few hours. She headed back towards the beachside part of town; it was about an hour away. The seclusion from the city was wonderful, most of the time. She had a small grocery store nearby but if her and the guys ever wanted to go out for dinner it was an hour drive.  
The ringer went off for her Bluetooth so she pressed the pickup button on the steering wheel  
“When are you going to be home so I know when to start dinner?” came Ian’s voice over the speakers.  
“On my way there now handsome. Got to make a few stops though and drop off invitations, shouldn’t take that long. What are you making for dinner?” she loved it when Ian cooked because he always made delicious meals.  
“So about an hour and half? You’ll just have to wait till you get home gorgeous. Drive safe.” He chuckled over the phone, they always played the game of guess what’s for dinner, and he never revealed it to her.  
“Hour and half sounds right. See you guys soon.” She pressed the end button on the phone and cranked up the music. The CD she currently had playing was Jem. She enjoyed the welsh singers soothing voice, her song “Falling for you” was playing now and made her think of her boys and of Maveric.  
A stack of envelopes sat on the passenger seat, she was glad she stuck some in her purse though. A smile crept to her lips as she remembered giving Maveric his invitation and that spark she felt as their hands connected. She had invitations to deliver to surrounding neighbors, most importantly was the one for Camy. Shawn would never forgive her if she didn’t give an invitation to that woman. Some talking might need to be done to make sure Camy could attend, especially if she had a child, a babysitter would be needed for the woman.  
She was half tempted to stop by the villa first and pick up Shawn and bring him along to deliver invitations. It would be interesting to see what would happen when Shawn and Camy first meet. She had other plans though for their first meeting, maybe she could pick up one of the other guys. Better idea she could see if Kyle wanted to go and take a ride on his bike, bad idea though since it was still sunny out. She frowned and thought of Seth, her dark and brooding man, but then again he didn’t like going out in public a lot because of his scar.  
The miles and time flew by as she thought of things she needed to do. She debated if she wanted to hire a decorator or do it herself. A caterer would be needed for sure there was no way she wanted to spend her time in the kitchen when she had a party going on. Been there, done that, no way going back. She loved doing decorations so would do that herself and a good caterer shouldn’t be that hard to find.  
Images swirled through her mind of how the main room would look... The walls would be draped in sheer organza strips from the ceiling down to the floor, in colors of black, gold and silver. Small gold colored floating balls would be in giant clear vases filled with water with smooth black pebbles at the bottom, place on giant wrought iron stands throughout the room. Black and silver swirled tapers on silver candelabras on the tables. The few round tables would have black tablecloths with sheer silver overtop it dusted with gold flecks. The dishes she had in the china cabinet would go perfectly with the color scheme; they were fine china with a black and gold checker pattern on the rims…  
Before she knew it she was in her neighborhood a few blocks from her villa. She would head home first to change out of the skirt and corset top for something more comfortable and loose. If one of the guys decided to join her that would be fine, it was always nice to put on a show for the neighbors. The gates were shut as she pulled up to her place, a simple click on the remote in her middle console and it started to swing open. Home sweet home.  
A red hayabusa was parked in the driveway meaning Kyle was home. He was her red wolf, her outdoor and sport boy that enjoyed camping on the beach under the stars and anything that had to do with sports. She parked her car right outside the door and climbed out of the car and headed inside.  
“Boys I’m home!” she yelled out and giggled as it reminded her of the Flintstones. The sound of bare feet against the tile floor came from behind her and a pair of strong arms swooped her up.  
“Hey sexy thought we wouldn’t see you for another half hour. Miss us to much?”  
Kyle said as he tossed her over his shoulder and headed up the stairs with her.  
“You big goof, put me down!” she laughed and playfully swatted at him.  
“I know your headed upstairs to change so you’ll just have to deal with me carrying you. Did you already hand out invitations?”  
She gave up struggling “at least carry me normally, fireman hold is so uncomfortable.” She grinned as he easily repositioned her and held her in his arms.  
“Yes master” he said sarcastically and then kissed her on her forehead, “So invitations? Delivered or not?”  
“No, not yet. I wanted to change first. I love this skirt but its not the best, ‘Hi I’m throwing a masquerade party and your invited’ skirt. Wanna join me to deliver them?”  
He grinned and the freckles danced on his face, “I’d love that. Your car I guess since its still sunny out.”  
“But of course darling.” She nipped at his neck as they reached the bedroom, “Where are the rest of the guys? Ian’s cooking right?” she squirmed till he set her down.  
The door swung open and Ty stood there in a black muscle shirt and gray sweatpants, “I’m right here. Last I saw Seth was in the library and Shawn is walking the beach. You have got to get this party done so he stops brooding.”  
“I know. I’m going as fast as I can. If you want to help look for a good caterer” at the mention of that Ty’s face scrunched up, “never mind I’ll let Ian do that.” She brushed past Ty giving him a kiss on the cheek and headed towards her closet. “I’ve decided to do my own decorations so I will need some help with that.”  
“Let me know what you need and I’ll plan a shopping trip for tomorrow.” He sniffed the air “Dinner smells almost ready so hurry up and change and go deliver your invitations.” He headed out the room and shut the door.  
“Help me out some?” she beckoned to Kyle who had plopped down on the bed.  
He got out of bed and walked over to her a smile on his lips “My pleasure. Zipper stuck on these?”  
“No there’s a hook on them and I’m feeling lazy.” She giggled and picked up her shirt some so he could see where the fastening was on the skirt. With agile fingers he quickly undid it and the zipper as well. She shimmied out of the skirt and browsed through the closet for either jeans or the flowy skirt that felt so comfortable. The skirt was hanging and first one she came across so she pulled that on. It was a white cotton knee length full skirt that swished when she walked.  
“You take forever,” Kyle complained with a smile, “Ian is going to be done with dinner and it’s going to be cold by the time we get back.”  
“Stop your whining, I’m already ready. Lets go.” She sashayed over to him and pushed him so he was lying on the bed and then started to run out of the room laughing all the way.  
“Brat!” he yelled as she started heading down the stairs. He jumped up off the bed and chased after her. She got to the bottom of the stairs when he caught up to her and picked her up.  
“Put me down Kyle!” she giggled and beat at his back.  
He grabbed her car keys from the side table and opened the door and walked out to the car with her over his shoulder, “Woman settle down. Do you know where all you’re wanting to deliver invites to?” he set her down on the passenger side of the car.  
“Mainly just the block. The woman Shawn has eyes for is in this area. Not sure which house is hers but I’m sure we will find it. You can drive, but please don’t drive like a maniac, this is not your hayabusa.”  
He opened the car door for her and grinned wickedly “Me? Drive like a maniac? I have no idea what you’re talking about. Get in and put your seatbelt on missy.” He shut the door once her feet were in and walked around to the driver’s side and climbed in. The engine roared to life when he started it and he peeled out of the driveway.  
“Really? I don’t want black marks on my driveway Kyle! You’re such a pain. So has Shawn talked to you guys any about his mystery woman Camy?” she twisted in her seat so she could see him better.  
“That boy is head over heels for her and he hasn’t even met her yet. I can’t wait to see what she looks like, if she’s as good as he says she looks. May have to steal her away if she is.” He glanced at Eve and saw her dip in her smile “Aww babe, just kidding, you’re my one and only.” Her smile picked up and he smiled also. “First house coming up, you got your invitations ready?”  
She dug through her purse and fished out an invitation. “Here’s hoping to an anti awkward meeting of the neighbors. Can you believe that in the five months we’ve lived here we haven’t met the neighbors? What is wrong with this picture?”  
“Nothing wrong with it babe. Now perk up that look of yours and lets go meet some neighbors.” He slapped her on the thigh and slowed down and pulled into the first driveway. With the car parked he got out and walked over to her door and opened it. “Lead the way madam” he goofily bowed to her.  
Eve stepped out of the car and headed towards the front door with Kyle trailing behind her. First meetings were sometimes awkward, but sometimes very rewarding. She licked her lips as she thought of Maveric Archer. She lifted the golden ring on the door and gently tapped it. A soft padding could be heard as someone headed towards the door. 

The door opened and a young man stood there with gym shorts on with tousled hair and a serious look on his face. “Can I help you?”  
Eve smiled, “Hi there, my name is Eve and I’m your next door neighbor. I'm having a masquerade party so that I can get to know my neighbors and would like to invite you and your family.” She held out the black envelope with the silver border.  
He face broke into a smile “So you’re the one who bought the beach house. Karen and I have been wondering who moved in there. Nice cars, my name is Mike hang on let me get my wife” He turned his head inside the house and yelled “Hey Karen come here!”  
A few seconds later a brunette popped out into the hallway “What’s going on Mikey? Who are they?” she walked up to him and put her arm around him.  
“Karen baby these are the new neighbors that bought the beach house. Eve and didn’t catch your friends name.”  
Eve smiled and pulled Kyle forward to her side “This here is Kyle.”  
She had a gorgeous smile “Oh! About time you introduced yourself sillies! Come on in! Mikey why didn’t you invite them in? That’s being a bad host.”  
“Actually we don’t have much time, just delivering invitations. I do hope you’ll attend.” She handed the invitation to Karen who promptly opened it and let out a squeal.  
“Look Mikey! A party! A masquerade party! Oh honey this is superb! We will most certainly attend Eve. Thank you so much for the invite! Well we will let you go deliver the rest of them invitations. Till the party!”  
“Look forward to seeing you there Mike and Karen. Have a great evening.” Eve smiled and waved goodbye to them and turned around as the door shut behind them, “Well that went well. Lets hope the rest are that bubbly.”  
“Bubbly indeed. I’m slightly sickened by that much bubbliness. Save me from the bubbliness.” He laughed and opened the car door for her.  
She laughed with him and buckled up the seatbelt. He slid in the driver seat “Remember no peeling out, this is not our driveway mister.”  
“Yes ma’am. How many houses do you suppose we have to go through till we reach this Camy’s house?” he slowly drove out of the driveway and pulled out onto the street.  
“No earthly idea hun. Good thing there aren’t a whole lot of houses on our block. Cheer up now, next house is coming up.” She patted his hand gently and smiled.  
Five more houses passed by and still no sign of Shawn’s lady of the beach. There were 2 more houses left to deliver invitations to. So far everyone had been very welcoming and excited at the prospect of a masquerade party, some voicing they had never attended one before and some had. Kyle pulled into the second to the last house and parked behind a shiny red Maserati GranTurismo.  
“I’m liking this place already.” He said as he admired the gorgeous car, he got out of the car and headed over to it, forgetting to open the door for Eve. She rolled her eyes at him and got out of the car.  
“You can either stay here and ogle the car or come with me and meet its owner.” She said to him as she headed to the door.  
“Owner. Car pretty. I want pretty car.” He mumbled behind her as he stumbled along. Eve chuckled, men and cars, they seemed to lose their minds around them. The door was a dark oak with glass stars in it; the knocker was a silver crescent moon. She admired the craftsmanship and then lifted the knocker and tapped it against the door.  
A few moments passed and then the door swung open revealing a stunning woman. She had long black tresses tinted with soft red highlights that went down to her thighs. Her eyes were a piercing midnight blue and she had a cluster of small stars framing the left side of her face around her eye. She was wearing a black tank top with a silver pentagram on it, which revealed a small section of her stomach. Blue jean skirt that showcased her long legs, and her feet were bare. “Can I help you sugah?” came her rich southern accent that flowed like honey from a pot.  
“Eve Conner, I recently moved in down the block. This is Kyle Mason, ignore the drool he is ogling your car.” A quick glance revealed that his gaze was still riveted to the car. She poked him in the ribs and he swung his gaze towards her “What?” he barked at her.  
He did a double take and looked at the woman and took a step forward towards her “Kyle Mason, and who my lady might you be?”  
The woman smiled flashing pearly whites, “Celeste Ravenwolfe.” A slow bush crept up on her cheeks.  
“Gorgeous name. The reason for our intrusion is we are hosting a masquerade party to get to know our neighbors and I would love for you to attend.” He waved his hand at Eve for an invitation and when she put one in it he held it out for Celeste.  
“Masquerade party huh. Love those parties, and if you’ll be there sugah I will certainly attend.” She batted her eyelashes at him and reached out a hand to grab the envelope. When their hands connected she let out a small gasp and latched onto his hand. He stepped in closer to her unsteadily, panting some. “Oh I most definitely will be there…” she whispered. He lifted up his other hand and cupped her cheek then quickly removed it.  
Eve stood there behind him and watched the scene unfold, if she had to guess right now she would say the red paw print would be fading. She smiled at them knowing just how they were feeling and her thoughts drifted to Maveric. As much as she hated ruining this perfect moment she knew they still had one more house to go to and dinner was waiting on them, she cleared her throat softly and Celeste’s eyes darted to her and she released her grip on Kyle.  
“Oh my… forgive me Eve darling. Here I am making moves on your man. Oh dear how horrible of me.” She looked downwards at her shiny red toes.  
Eve smiled “Don’t be sorry and while yes he is my man, I feel I should be blunt at this point, I have four other men at home.” When Celeste’s eyes shot up to hers in amazement, a giggle escaped her lips. She winked at Celeste “Well we better be going, we still have one more house to visit, see you at the party.”  
“Most definitely. Pleasure to meet both of you.” She said as her gaze lingered on Kyle and his on hers. She took a step backwards and wiggled her fingers at him and winked “See ya wolfie” and gently shut the door.  
Kyle stumbled down the stairs and handed Eve the keys to the car. He looked like he was a drunken fool making his way to the passenger side of the car. Eve pondered over that last comment Celeste said as she hit the unlock button on the remote. She had called him wolfie, it certainly something to look into. The locks clicked open and she slid into the driver seat and waited for Kyle to get his seatbelt on, he seemed to be having some issues.  
“Love drunk buddy?” and she giggled as he missed again with the latch.  
He finally managed to get it right and grinned at Eve sheepishly, “Maybe.” He leaned back in his seat staring at the window of the house that showed a quick flash of the inside as the curtain fell back down.  
“It’s ok if you are, I wont be upset. Lets get this last house done with, hopefully its Camy’s, if not Shawn will be heartbroken.” She put the car in reverse and pulled out of the drive way and onto the main street.  
The next house was a few hundred feet down and was a pale blue Victorian style two-story house with giant bay windows framing the door and a gorgeous wrap around porch complete with children’s toys, rocking chairs and a swinging chair with an afghan thrown over the back of it. A huge oak tree was rooted firmly in the front yard with a wooden swing hung from one of the branches. It was the perfect family house that was found in picture books.  
“This looks like the place, he said she had a kid right?” Kyle said as he admired the huge tree and the swing.  
“I’m hoping it’s the place. Ya a son, Caden I think that’s what he said. Lets go find out if mystery woman is home.” She parked the car on the curb and stepped out. There was a walkway leading up to the front door, covered with bright chalk scribbles that were probably magnificent art in the eye of the child. She smiled and waited for Kyle to catch up to her.  
“Man I miss being a kid and drawing with chalk.” Kyle said wistfully. He reached out and grabbed Eve’s hand and swung it as they walked up to the door.  
Squealing and laughter could be heard from inside the house. Sounded like they were home, hopefully they would be able to hear the doorbell Eve thought. She stepped over a pile of cars that looked like they were in a huge auto collision and onto the patio. The wood floor was scuffed from play but still in good condition. Kyle pressed the button for the doorbell and they waited.  
“Mom!!! Doorbell!!!!” could be heard from inside and then a flurry of footsteps up stairs.  
“Caden don’t you dare run up the stairs mister!” came a stern but sweet voice. The door creaked open slightly “Hello?” A bright red head peaked out from behind the door as it slowly opened. Her skin was pale and she had freckles across the bridge of her nose and a smudge of chocolate on her cheek. Hazel eyes looked cautiously at the two strangers on her doorstep. “Can I help you?”  
Eve grinned already in love with the woman “Hi my name is Eve and this is Kyle, we moved in down the street a little while ago. I’m hosting a masquerade party and would like to invite you. I’m doing it as a way to meet my neighbors, everyone else in the area has been invited as well.” She held out an invitation for the woman.  
“Oh the beach house new owners. Welcome to the neighborhood. My name is Camy.” She said as she smiled and opened the door wider. An apron was wrapped around her waist and covered with all kinds of ingredients from the kitchen. Her red hair was tied up in a bun but loose curls seemed to be flying every which direction they pleased. “You’ll have to forgive my appearance I was busy in the kitchen. Would you like to come in?”  
“I would love to but dinner is waiting at home for me. I would really appreciate it if you could come to the party, if you need to make any arrangements for a sitter or don’t know anyone please let me know, I know plenty of qualified people.” Eve said as she smiled at Camy.  
“Oh my… I haven’t been to a party in ages. Not since the terror was born.” And she laughed softly “I don’t even know if I have anything appropriate for a masquerade party.”  
“Well if you need anything please don’t hesitate to call me, my number is on the invitation. I really hope you can attend. Well I will let you get back to the kitchen, I’m afraid my dinner is going to be cold by the time I get home. There’s been plenty of excitement delivering these invitations.” Eve said and laughed.  
Camy raised a brow and smiled in return “We’ll thank you so much for inviting me, I will try hard to attend.”  
“Again, don’t hesitate to call me for anything, in fact how bout tomorrow you join me for a shopping trip? I still need to find my gown and mask. We can kill two birds with one stone and find you something as well.” Eve said her face lighting up at her brilliant idea and ploy to get to know this woman better.  
Camy looked hesitant “Well I don’t have anything planned for tomorrow but I can’t just leave my son behind.”  
“Bring him along then! We girls can always use a male’s perspective on outfits, even if they are little children. We can even stop for ice cream,” she added at the end when she heard footsteps coming down the stairs.  
“Please mom can we go! I promise I’ll behave and be on my bestest behavior. I want some ice cream!” came a child’s voice from the stairs.  
“Caden what have I told you about eavesdropping. We’ll see how you behave tonight young man.” Camy looked at them apologetically, “I will give you a call tomorrow and let you know about the shopping.”  
“Sounds fair enough, well have good evening you two. Till tomorrow.” Eve waved good-bye and headed back to her car as Camy shut the door. When they were close to the car she turned to Kyle and smiled “I like her. Shawn picked good.”  
“Yah he did. So how many days till the party now?” he looked back at Celeste’s house and let out a small sigh.  
“Three days. Still need to find a caterer, need to do the decorations, get all our outfits. You’ll see her soon enough hun. Get in the car and lets go home, I’m starving.” She couldn’t wait to get home and let Shawn know the good news. The passenger door closed and seatbelts clicked and they were headed off home. 

 

Maveric was heading back to his suite around the time that Eve was heading home. He was ready to take a relaxing shower and then get dressed for the banquet. His mind was still running through images of that woman and that electrifying elevator kiss. He snapped out of his daydream as his building loomed up in front of him and he pulled into his private garage and parked the Audi. His cellphone started ringing so he dug it out of his pocket and pressed the talk button “Hello?”  
“Have you called the twins yet? You know girls need warning before these types of events.” Marcus said on the other end.  
“Shit, forgot to call them. Can’t get my mind off of that woman, I think she put a spell on me or something. Thanks for reminding me man.” Maveric mentally slapped himself for that blunder.  
“I figured as much that’s why I called. Call them and hopefully they don’t bitch you out for late notice. Did you want to do the limo tonight or what?”  
“Limo sounds good, head over here when your ready and we will pick the girls up on the way to the event.”  
“You’re the boss. See you in a bit. Remember call them.” Marcus hung up the line.  
Maveric scrolled through his contact list for either Amber or Jade’s number and of course being it was alphabetical came across Amber’s first. He hit the call button and waited for her to answer.  
“Maveric Archer. I was beginning to think you were going to abandon us tonight.” Amber’s sultry voice said on the other line.  
“Amber darling, I had busy day at work can you forgive me? Do you still want to go tonight? Having limo pick Marcus and I up and we can pick you all up.” Maveric said in an apologetic tone as he rolled his eyes.  
“Of course we still want to go. Lucky for you we were already getting ready.” A giggle sounded “call us when your on your way handsome” and she hung up the phone.  
Maveric let out a sigh and walked over to the elevator, women drove him crazy at times. He pushed the up arrow button and stepped into the cart when it arrived and pushed the button for his suite. All he wanted right now was a stiff drink and a hot shower. He had a full bottle of Jack Daniels on hand and a bottle of coca cola in the fridge, the perfect combination. The elevator reached its destination and the doors slid open.  
He strolled into his suite and unbuttoned his shirt some and un-tucked it from his pants and slid his shoes off. The bar was his first destination, something to set his nerves at ease. He rolled his neck slowly and then massaged the base of it with one hand; he should look into hiring a masseuse.  
There were several Old Fashioned glasses with etchings on them some with C.C, some with M.A, and a few with tigers on them. He pulled down one with a tiger and walked over to the fridge and freezer combo and grabbed a few ice cubes. The cubes clinked as he dropped them in the glass and then he searched around his liquor cabinet for the new bottle of Johnny Walker Blue and cracked the seal around the lid. The rich amber liquid poured out of the bottle and swirled around the ice cube.  
He took a sip and closed his eyes in appreciation and the way it left a trail of warm fire down his throat. Johnny Walker blue was his favorite drink and he definitely needed it to prepare himself for the twins tonight. A small shudder ran through him and he headed towards the bathroom taking another sip of liquid encouragement. He would much rather have that emerald eyed temptress on his arm tonight but couldn’t call her with this late of notice. He took off his blazer and tossed it over the couch and watched as the black envelope fell from a pocket.  
The black envelope with its silver border was dark against his cream-colored leather couch. He walked over to it, picked it up and broke the star seal on the back and pulled out the invitation. The note itself was in the shape of a black mask dusted with silver glitter and had the date, time and place on the inside of the mask and included her phone number. He was so tempted to call her right now, but knew he couldn’t, maybe tomorrow. With a grin he set the invitation down on the coffee table and continued on to the bathroom.  
The glass was cold in his hand and felt good since he was usually always warm, another sip and that familiar burn down his throat made him smile. He entered the bathroom and set the drink down on the countertop and finished unbuttoning his shirt and pulled it off his shoulders. He had a broad frame and worked in the gym to define it and was rewarded with sculpted muscles that made women sigh and men jealous. Most men had smooth chests but he liked the lil bit of hair he had that dusted his chest and led a happy trail down his chest and his six pack. The gray dress slacks fit him comfortably and looked stunning on him since all the women gave him double takes today. He wasn’t that narcissistic but made sure he looked good for himself and his company. The button was quickly undone and he shucked the pants off and boxers followed. He took one last swig from his drink and stepped into the shower.  
With a small twist the faucet was turned on and hot water sprayed out and hit him face on, he shut his eyes quickly and turned around so it hit his back. His tattoo was on full display with his back turned. He had gotten it when he turned eighteen with money he had saved up from years of doing odd jobs.  
It was a tribal arc angel wing that unlike the traditional tattoo that most people had on their back his stood out and ran down his arm instead. There was no color to it, just solid black and had sharp edges to it and several points. It started at the center of his back and had a sharp curve to the top of left shoulder around his deltoid and then swooped down his tricep and ended at his elbow.  
Some thought it strange that he had just one wing and not both but he liked being different. He didn’t want to be like everyone else. The wings represented several things in his life, power he sought to attain to better the world, the transformation from boy to man as he grew up, the escape of bonds from when he left home and the rawness of it being tribal spoke to him on so many levels.  
He shook his head of the memories of when he first got it and the sweet pain he endured, he needed to shower and then get dressed for tonight’s gala. He grabbed his body wash and squirted some into his hand and lathered it up and soaped down his body quickly and efficiently. No time to spend lingering and thinking of Eve. He shampooed his hair and rinsed off under the semi hot water and then shut it off. Luckily a towel was hanging outside the shower so he grabbed that off the hook and wrapped it around his waist.  
The glass of scotch beckoned to him from the counter, a small pool of condensation underneath it since he took longer in the shower than planned. He finished off the drink and fixed up his hair. A quick swish of mouthwash and he left the bathroom and headed to his closet. The towel came undone on its own and fell mid walk he shrugged and picked it up and threw it to the bathroom.  
He still couldn’t believe that Caroline thought he needed to get a tuxedo. He had about 4 or 5 from white to black. The gray one looked good on him but he was sure Caroline would have a fit if it weren’t a black tuxedo. He slipped on some black boxers and selected a black tuxedo and found a silver tie to go along with it, he refused to wear bow ties, and they made him look clownish.  
He took the tuxedo down from the clothes rack and laid it on the bed and looked through his bottles of cologne. He had Armani, Kenneth Cole, Chrome, Burberry and several others. Chrome was his favorite, it had a citrus and fruity fragrance to it, the women loved it. He put a small dab on his wrist, chest and his neck and pulled on a white Under Armour shirt that fit snugly across his broad chest and defined his muscles. His cell phone went off so he picked it up and pushed the talk button.  
“Are you almost ready?” Marcus said.  
“Getting dressed before I was rudely interrupted. Make yourself useful and call the limo driver and then head over here, I’ll be ready by time you get here. We can get the girls then take off.” Maveric said as he undid the jacket and pulled out the dress shirt from beneath it.  
“Limo already called and I’ll head over. Please be dressed by time I get there, don’t need to see you in the buff. I prefer to keep my eyesight not lose it.”  
“Shut up. See you in bit jerk.” Maveric hung up on him and pulled on the dress shirt. He did up the buttons hating to do that last tiny button at the collar; it always made him feel like he was being suffocated. On second thought he left that one undone and would save it for the last minute in the limo. Pants were next and tailored perfectly to his height and size. He tucked the shirt in and then headed back to the bathroom.  
He had taken off his ring before his shower and felt naked without it. It was sitting on the counter, the emerald eyes winking at him when he turned the light on which made his thoughts drift towards Eve. That blasted woman had a way of sneaking into his mind every other minute. He slipped the ring onto his finer and headed out the bathroom and picked up the jacket and the tie and headed to his living room. As long as Marcus wasn’t speeding he had about 10 minutes to burn before his buddy got here.  
A buzz sounded from the garage doorbell. Marcus was either speeding or the limo was already here. He headed over to the intercom and pressed the talk button.  
“Mr. Archer the limo has arrived will you be coming down now?” said the security guard.  
“In a few minutes, waiting for Marcus to arrive. Tell him to wait a few minutes and then I’ll head down.” He picked up his cell and dialed Marcus and waited for him to answer.  
“I’m three minutes away. Already called Grace we are picking her up first once I get there. Go ahead go down to the garage I’ll meet you in a few.” Marcus said.  
“What the hell was that? I didn’t say anything and you answered all my questions. Weird. Whatever.” Maveric said in amusement. They grew up together and at times could read each other’s minds; it wasn’t that unusual but was weird at times.  
“I figured the limo would be there already. See ya in the garage.” And hung up on him.  
Maveric shrugged and walked to his room and grabbed socks since he forgot those and sat down on the bed and pulled them on. Shoes, jacket, tie and then garage he manually listed in his mind. He slipped on the shoes that were by the bedroom door and picked up the jacket and tie on the way to the elevator. A quick push of the down button and the door slid open. He relaxed in the elevator cart on the ride down to the garage and flipped through his cell contacts for Amber’s number again. Might as well call her and let her know they were on their way.  
The elevator door slid open as he pressed the talk button on the phone to call Amber. Her sultry voice answered the call “Finally on your way?”  
“Marcus will be here in a few moments and were picking up his date Grace and then we will get you two.” He said as he headed over to the parked limo.  
“Sounds terrific. See you soon handsome.” She replied.  
A squealing sounded and Marcus’s Bugatti pulled into the garage. Perfect timing Maveric thought. Marcus parked the car and stepped out of it in a sharp black tuxedo with a gold colored tie. “Hurry it up old man” and he speed walked to the limo laughing.  
Marcus got to the limo first despite Maveric’s attempt to beat him there. They got in the limo and stretched out on the side seats. Maveric knocked on the driver’s window and waited for it to roll down.  
“James take us by Waterfall Drive first were picking up Marcus’s date and then heading to Jewel Lane to pick up the twins.” He told the driver.  
“Sure thing Mr. Archer. The twins tonight huh. Ought to be interesting night” and he rolled the window back up and chuckled.  
“Any liquor over there?” Marcus asked as he loosened his tie a bit.  
Maveric raised a brow “There is a full wet bar over here, pick your poison my man.”  
“Crown and coke for me. It’s going to be a long night. Where’s your tie?” Marcus said as he watched Maveric make him his drink.  
Maveric finished the drink and handed it to Marcus and then pulled his tie out of his pocket and waved it at him. “I figured I would wait to put it on before I got there so I wouldn’t be choking the whole time. Figured you would have done the same buddy,” and he let out a chuckle. “So how are things with Grace?”  
Marcus gave a shrug and took a sip from his drink “She’s getting clingy. Talking bout marriage and stuff.” He let out a small shudder. “Not ready for that man, I don’t even feel she’s the one for me. I mean she’s gorgeous and all, got the brains, but… she’s kind of boring at times. She doesn’t even like my car. I mean what the heck?” the glass met his lips again and he took another sip.  
“Don’t worry buddy, think of it as a trial run. You’ll find the right girl and she’ll take your breath away. Just don’t lead Grace on to long or you’ll feel like a jerk. Just try having a good time tonight. Drink up were getting close to her place and you can’t be looking all depressed.”  
Marcus tossed back the drink and grinned at Maveric “ I knew I kept you around for a reason.”  
The window rolled down, “Pulling up to Waterfall Drive, let me know where her place is so I can park.” James said.  
“Lindor Condo’s. Let me call her.” Marcus said and pulled out his cell. He dialed a number and waited for the answer. “Grace I’m here. I’ll head up and walk you down” he said sitting up in his seat and then a pause “Ok that’s fine see you down here.” He hung up the phone and relaxed back into the seat “She’s heading down here already.” As the limo parked he turned so he could keep an eye on the door to the building to see when she came out so he could open the door for her.  
A few moments later a black haired woman came out the front door in a golden dress that clung to her ivory skin. Marcus got out of his seat and opened the door and met her halfway. She was almost his height but not quite so he had to look down at her. He held the door open for her and she slid into the vehicle and took a seat.  
“Maveric nice to see you again. Where is your date at?” Grace said as Marcus slid in next to her.  
“Grace looking radiant as ever. Next stop is to pick them up.” Maveric said with a grin on his face.  
“Them?” she raised her perfectly shaped eyebrow questioning his word choice.  
Maveric smiled and leaned back in his seat “Them. Amber and Jade. You remember Amber don’t you? She came with us to the last party.”  
“Oh. Amber. Right…Who is Jade?” she asked as she snuggled up close to Marcus.  
“Amber’s twin sister” he said with a smug grin.  
She rolled her eyes and let out a sigh “Really Maveric? Are you fucking them both?”  
Marcus turned and looked at Grace with an expression like ‘did you really say that to my best friend’. Maveric just laughed, “I see you’re a bit more blunt then last time. I was considering it but not now.”  
Grace blushed and shrunk into her seat and muttered an apology. The window partition slid down and James spoke up “Coming up to Jewel Lane. Best call your women Mr. Archer.”  
Maveric rolled his eyes and pulled out his phone and dialed Amber’s number. “Amber, hun, were here. Yes it’s a limo. Yes there will be paparazzi. See you in a few.” He put his phone back in his pocket. “I swear that woman is only after the fame. Whatever. She makes good arm candy.” He turned to the bar and grabbed the bottle of Jack and took a swig straight from the bottle.  
An abrupt rapping was heard on the window and he turned around and saw the girls standing outside looking very impatient. They were platinum blondes with slender figures, they looked just about identical except for their eye colors, hence their names. He unlocked his door and held it open for them. “Ladies come on in to the party machine.”  
“Maveric you should have had the door open for us instead of us having to knock on the window” Amber said in a pissed off voice as she and Jade climbed into the limo.  
Maveric inhaled deeply and pasted a smile on his face “Girls my apology, I’ll make sure doesn’t happen again. Can we get this ball rolling and just enjoy the night?” He took Ambers hand and placed a kiss on it.  
Amber smiled won over by charm and the simple kiss and scooted close to him “Of course darling.”  
The rest of the ride went smoothly and uneventful till they arrived at the banquet hall. The outside was swarming with paparazzi, flashes going off wildly, reminding Maveric of lightning during the wild stormy nights he used to stay up and watch. The girls next to him were primping and touching up their makeup, he rolled his eyes.  
“Remember to hold the door for us Maveric.” Amber said as she linked arms with her sister Jade.  
“Yes girls. Smile for the cameras, I’ll try to get us through this quickly.” Maveric opened up the limo door and stepped out and held out his hand. Amber grabbed his left hand and Jade his right hand and stepped gracefully out of the vehicle smiling like little angels. 

 

“Maveric!” “Over here!” “Who else are you escorting tonight? Amber sexy as ever!” and as Marcus stepped out of the limo with Grace they started yelling for him “Marcus over here! Grace looking lovely tonight” Maveric and Marcus tried to lead the women through the swarm of paparazzi. Amber and Jade weren’t helping much, stopping for each time Amber’s name was called. He tugged on the women’s hands and finally managed to get them through the crowd and into the building where the cameras weren’t as frequent.  
There were a few reporters inside from the high top magazines that frequented the magazine racks. One of them stopped him and asked a good question that he actually took the moment to answer it instead of saying no comment.  
“Maveric as CEO of Crimson Cocktails how do you feel about vampires?” said the reporter.  
“Well given the field I am in and the company that I have created... I feel that vampires are a great part of this economy. 10% of the company profits go toward charities and helping families that have been hurt in some way or another by a lost vampire. As well as other charities many of which have been setup by the vampires that are employed by the company. You’d be surprised how much work my team does at night. I to was a victim of a lost vampire when my family was attacked but I didn’t vow revenge. I vowed that we would end the violence. So 15 years later and 10 million invested in researching here we are today”  
“Great response Mr. Archer. Enjoy the gala.” And the reporter wandered off to question other guests that were entering the building.  
Amber tugged on his arm, “Will you dance with me?” she batted her eyes up at him and made a pouty face.  
Maveric let out a heavy sigh “You know I don’t dance. Go find another guy to dance with.” Amber frowned at him and then let go of his arm and grabbed her sister’s arm and left the group. He thought to himself, good riddance. A slow song started playing and his mind drifted off into a daydream of a green eyed woman and him dancing under the stars.  
“Care to dance?” Marcus asked Grace when he noticed Maveric start to drift off. Grace took his hand and smiled “Would love to and thought you would never ask.” They gracefully moved onto the dance floor and whirled out of sight.  
Maveric found himself wandering through the mazes of people and ending up outside in the cool night air. He was surprised that no one had followed him out; reporters were usually all over him at events like this. Caroline had yet to track him down which was a relief in many ways. He spied a path that led into the gardens and decided to follow it; the music from the building behind him was low and soothing.  
“Maveric!” came Caroline’s shrill shout behind him and he winced, so much for the peace and quiet of the night. He turned around and started walking back towards the building.  
“Maveric hurry up they are wanting to toast to you!” Caroline yelled from the doorway, he could see her hands were on her waist and she was tapping her foot impatiently.  
“Coming Caroline.” The woman was awfully impatient at times, but he enjoyed egging her on. She was always a sweetheart with him, even though she seemed she wasn’t.  
He picked up his speed when she glanced at her watch and looked at him grumpily. Maveric was no more than ten steps away from where she was standing but she always enjoyed making things seem more then they were. She spun around her yellow dress trailing behind her, “Follow me Maveric and allow me to introduce you and get this over with so you can go back to being a recluse. I swear, why do you attend these events if you’re just going to spend all your time away from the party?”  
He chuckled “You make me attend these events woman. Lead away and I’ll follow like an obedient puppy.” When he entered the room he scanned it for Marcus and saw him off in the corner arguing with Grace and a moment later she stormed off and Marcus was standing there looking dazed and hurt. He wondered if it was just a small fight or the big break up. He was just glad the reporters were focused on him for the moment and not Marcus.  
Caroline stopped him and put a hand on his arm and turned on her 100 watt smile “Ladies and Gentlemen I would like to introduce to you tonight Mr. Maveric Archer, founder and CEO of Crimson Cocktails. The banquet tonight is being held in his honor to recognize him for all the hard work he has done for our city, our state and our country. Without his genius ideas this world could quite possibly be non-existent and over run by the vampire community. So lets raise our glasses high” a server came by and handed Caroline and Maveric champagne flutes “and toast to this wonderful man!” Caroline raised her glass and smiled at Maveric and then took a sip. The crowd followed suit and then a round of applause went off.  
Maveric smiled and then shook hands with everyone as they came up to say their thanks and just to say hello. Ten minutes later he shook his last hand and went to round up Marcus and the twins. He came across the twins first who were clinging to a guys arm and showering him with attention, they caught his eye and waved him off, which he didn’t mind at all. In the distance he spotted Marcus sitting at a table nursing a drink that looked like crown and coke. He maneuvered his way through the crowds and finally reached the table that Marcus was sitting at.  
“Can we go?” Marcus said first as he looked up at Maveric and followed his question with a swig of his drink.  
“Gladly. Lets get out of here.” Marcus stood up and they both made their way to the exit.  
“Are the twins coming home with us?” he said in a bland tone and when he noticed Maveric shake his head no he let out a sigh of relief “Thank god” after that they walked in silence, only speaking when someone stopped them to say hello.  
Several minutes later they found themselves out in the cool night air waiting for the limo to come around and pick them up. Maveric glanced over at his buddy and his slumped posture. Poor guy, he would get over it soon though, he probably just wasn’t expecting the breakup to come this fast and it just hit him hard.  
“Stop looking at me like I’m a lost puppy. I was bound to break up with her sooner or later; she just made it easier for me.” The limo pulled up and parked in front of them. James got out and opened up the door for them; they slid in and made a hasty retreat. 

 

Dinner itself was delicious; Ian outdid himself like he usually did. They all sat at the giant table, Eve at the head of the table with the boys surrounding her. She had yet to break the news to Shawn; she was saving the juicy news till after they ate.  
“So how did it go?” Seth asked as he sucked off a piece of meat from the bone he held.  
“It went great! Our neighbors are super nice and I can’t believe it took us so long to introduce ourselves. I still need help planning the party. Ian can you look up a caterer for the party?”  
Ian looked over at her, “Would be glad to darling. I’ll get started on that in the morning. You look like you have more news though to say so spill the beans.”  
Eve smiled widely, her boys certainly knew her well enough. “I met Camy. I’m taking her with me to go shopping tomorrow. As long as we can find a sitter for her son she will come to the party.” She was watching Shawn as she broke the news and saw a wild grin spread across his face.  
“Can I come with you shopping? Pretty please?” Shawn said as he leaned forward in his chair.  
“Sorry handsome, I’ve got other plans for how you two meet. You’re staying here. Besides this is a girls only trip, well, her son is coming along also but he doesn’t count.”  
“That’s not fair. You’re going to make me wait till the party to finally meet her, when I could be in her company tomorrow.” He slumped back in his chair and frowned.  
“Don’t be upset Shawn. You’ll thank me for this later.” Eve said to him and then pushed back her chair “I’m going to go change into some comfier clothes and then start looking for a DJ for the party.”  
Ty tilted his head some “I know some good DJ’s I can work on that part, I still have some hook ups from back in the day.”  
“Sounds perfect and one thing less for me to worry about. Thanks love!” she stood from the chair and walked around the table giving them each a hug and a kiss “A bath is sounding kind of nice right now.” She walked away from the table and headed upstairs. Some days she wished she had an elevator so she didn’t have to walk up the stairs. The glossy handrail felt smooth and cool underneath her hand as she climbed the stairs. A bubble bath sounded very soothing and relaxing at the moment, her feet had been screaming at her for the past few hours.  
“Would you rather I carry you up the stairs? I have never seen someone take so long to go up one flight of stairs,” Seth’s rough voice came from behind her.  
“Cant a girl just take her time walking up the stairs? Come to join me in my bubble bath?” she stopped where she stood so he could catch up to her.  
He stalked up the stairs to her, with a feral smile on his face. Half of his face was covered by shabby black hair. When he was younger he was attacked by a rogue shifter who his pack had tried to welcome in. His reminder of that day was a jagged scar running down the right side of his face from his forehead down to his middle cheek. She thought it made him look devilishly handsome but he hated it.  
She reached out to him as he got closer and brushed the hair away from his face and tucked it behind his ear. “I don’t like when you hide your scar. That’s part of what make you, you.”  
He frowned at her and rolled his eyes “Your crazy woman. Let’s go get your bath started.” He held her hand as they continued up the stairs to the master bedroom. He opened the door and pushed her inside the room almost roughly.  
The wolf was here to play, she thought to herself. She braced herself and turned towards him with her fangs bared. “Come and get me wolf” she beckoned to him with a crooked finger.  
He ripped off his shirt and stalked towards her, his body was lean and covered in small scars. Parts of his scars were from her and where she had fed from him, the rest from his fights before he met her. Her tongue darted out and licked her lips; he always made her feel mischievous. He held out a hand and grinned wickedly as it shifted into a furry paw complete with a set of sharp claws.  
“Come here.” He growled at her softly. She walked up to him slowly, swaying her hips seductively. “Now, not 10 minute later.” He stepped towards her and reached out with his human arm and snaked it around her waist and yanked her towards him. He reached his clawed hand towards her and hooked it at the top off her blouse and dragged it down ripping the soft material.  
“Seth” she moaned softly. He buried his nose in her neck taking a deep whiff of her scent and they both shuddered, goose bumps rose on her skin as he placed soft kisses down her neck and down her chest.  
His hand crept down to her waist and crept underneath her waistline of the skirt hooking a finger onto her lace thong, at the same time her hands moved around his waist and up his back. Her nails scraped lightly at his skin all the way to the top of his shoulders where she gripped tightly and drew blood. That sweet nectar welled up under the small crescent shaped wound and called to her.  
“All yours” he whispered in her ear, nipping lightly at her earlobe. She shuddered lightly and licked at his neck tasting his saltiness and feeling the blood that pulsed in carotid artery. She kissed the area softly and then with a quick motion sunk her fangs into the artery. He let out a soft moan and closed his eyes and pulled her tighter, his claws digging into her skin. It was a combination of pain and pleasure that sent her over the edge. His blood was like honey on her lips and tongue and made her pulse speed up.  
He lifted her up and carried her over to the bed and gently pried her off his neck and when she whimpered at the removal he threw her on the bed. He unhooked the button on his jeans sending them to the ground and crawled on the bed towards her.  
She smiled and shimmied out of her skirt, leaving her in the matching lace lingerie set. Her mind flashed to a tall dark man with a streak of silver in his hair and she shivered. What she would give to have that man crawling on bed towards her, looking at her like she was the best thing on the earth. She was pulled forward on the bed abruptly and her mind went back to Seth.  
“Your mine tonight Eve. Focus on me for now, forget the others.” He growled and bit at her inner thigh breaking the skin and drawing blood. His tongue caressed the wound licking up the spilled blood. “Honey” was all he said and then licked it again. His hand had shifted back to normal and they both caressed up her legs. He hooked his fingers in her thong and pulled at the sides causing them to rip allowing him to pull them off easily. His fingers gripped her waist and pulled her down further on the bed, closer to him.  
A knock sounded on the door “Heads up you two” came Ty’s deep voice and the door swung open and he walked in.  
Seth turned towards him and let out a low growl that rumbled in his chest and vibrated against her legs “Get…out...”  
Ty laughed “You don’t scare me pup but fine I’ll give you 5 minutes. Learn to share next time” and he spun around and left the room.  
Seth rolled his shoulders causing them to pop and then looked ferociously at her “Your mine right now and I don’t feel like sharing.” He lifted himself off the bed some and roughly pulled her down and slid inside her in a quick thrust. She let out a gasp and dragged her nails down his back digging her nails into his firm ass pulling him in deeper. He thrust into her harder and faster a few more time and then slid out and flipped her over so she lay on her stomach.  
Seth was her dark one, the one to give her the rough foreplay and sex that she sometimes craved. He grabbed her hair and pulled it back and bit her shoulder roughly. She felt something cold on her back and shivered when a claw trailed down her spine and then gasped again as he thrust into her from behind. He reached around and cut through her bra and her breasts spilled out from the lace cups. The almost rubber texture of his paw felt magical against her soft skin, he gripped it and was careful with the claws not to scratch the soft skin to much. Gentle abrasions were fine but no blood.  
“Times up!” and the door flew open and Ty ran in and jumped on the bed with them causing Seth to scratch her chest deeper than normal and she let out a yelp and a cuss word.  
“Ty! What the hell?” she sat up in bed wincing at the cuts. Two were across her left breast and the other two below it. She turned around and glared at the boys with her fangs bared and she held up her palm “See this scar? I shouldn’t have scars! This was a few days ago,” she burst into tears and got out of the bed and stormed into the bathroom locking the door behind her.  
The door shook as the guys banged on it “Eve what’s going on?” she slumped against the door and cradled her head in her hands and let the tears flow. A few minutes of her sobfest and she stood up gingerly and looked at herself in the mirror. Blood welled up and was seeping down her stomach; they burned as though on fire. Cuts from her wolves were even worse than a regular scratch. She picked up a washcloth and wet it under the faucet and pressed it gently to the cuts.  
“Eve! I’m going to break down the door if you don’t open it right now.” Ty yelled from outside.  
She stormed to the door and threw it open, “Ty you are on my shit list right now. I’m giving you 3 seconds to get out of this room before I do something irrational.” She glared at him and he frowned and then left the room. Seth whimpered softly from the bed where he had moved back to.  
“Eve.. I’m sorry..I..should have kept the claws sheathed..i’m sorry.” He hung his head in shame.  
“Bandage me up and I’ll forgive you. It wasn’t your fault and normally you’re very careful with your claws.” She headed over to him and kissed him on the top of his head. 

He ran his hand up her thigh softly, “You’re too kind Eve. Let me go get those bandages and get you taken care of.” He stood from the bed and headed to the bathroom to get bandages they kept for situations such as these. Rare situations, but they did occur none the less.  
There was a soft tapping on the door “Eve?” It was Ian’s voice, always soft and soothing. “Can I come in?”  
“Yes Ian.” She lay down on the bed since sitting hurt too much. She felt comfortable around the guys to be completely nude. He came over to the bed and sat down gently on it. “Let me see babe” he gently peeled off the damp washcloth and hissed. “Baby roughness does not work for you.” A stray curl was loose and he pushed it back behind her ear. “Seth hurry up with those wraps.”  
“Coming.” And he stepped out of the bathroom, arms laden with white cloth bandages and medical tape. “Can you clean that washcloth and bring it back?” he asked Ian.  
Ian stood and headed to the bathroom and running water could be heard for a brief moment and then he came back into the bedroom. The cloth felt hot against the cuts and she could feel the small clots of blood that had crusted break away from the skin.  
“Why isn’t it healing like normal babe?” Ian said as he gazed worriedly at the cuts, “Aren’t you feeding enough from us?”  
“I am. I don’t know what’s wrong Ian, and it scares me. I went to Crimson Cocktails the other day.”  
“That synthetic blood place? Why would you do that?” he asked confused.  
“I didn’t want to burden you all. They are going to see about mixing vitamins or something with blood, more nourishing.” She looked away guiltily.  
“Well take vitamins. You don’t have to go there love.” He looked hurt that she was looking around elsewhere for sustenance and defeated that they weren’t able to provide it for her, “how long has this been going on?”  
“Not long, maybe a month… I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before.” A tear slipped out of the corner of her eye and trailed down her face.  
“We’ll get through this love. I’ll let the guys know and we will start taking more vitamins, see if that improves what’s going on with you.” Ian got up from the bed and let Seth bandage up the wounds, “Get rest tonight love, we will crash in our own room tonight.” He looked a little bummed but left the room.  
“Want me to stay with you tonight?” Seth asked as he gently helped her up so he could wrap the bandage around her chest.  
“Thanks hun but I think tonight I just want to be alone.” He finished the wrap and helped her lay down again and tucked the cover around her.  
“Understood Eve, sweet dreams see you in the morning.” He kissed her softly and left the room. She rarely slept alone these days. This was probably the first time in months she had the bed all to herself. It felt lonely. Hopefully her dreams weren’t lonely.

Maveric crawled into bed after a long night. He and Marcus had stopped for drinks afterwards and several hours later and in a drunken stupor they made their way homes, grateful for the limo. Marcus’s car would stay in his garage till he was sober enough to drive it home. His head throbbed like beating drums and the room wouldn’t stop spinning. He closed his eyes and covered his head with a pillow and slipped into oblivion. Hoping that his dreams would deliver him a green eyed angel with a voluptuous body. 

She was in a dense and dark forest. Birds were crying in the distant and the wind was ruffling the leaves in the tree. The canopy was too thick to see the moon or stars but that didn’t bother her much since her eyes worked perfectly fine in the darkness. The wind blew something her way, a smoky smell. She turned in the direction of it and started walking, the leaves crunching under her bare feet. Bare feet? In the forest? Weird for her dream, but ok. 

He was in a log cabin that he wasn’t familiar with. It wasn’t huge but it was cozy and there was a giant bed. Those were usually a good sign for dreams and he had to grin. Maybe he would be getting his wish after all. His eyes wandered around the room taking in the fireplace which had a roaring fire going on. He heard a crunching sound and stood up, something or someone was outside. There weren’t any clean windows so he headed to the door and looked outside. Wooded land greeted him and a sweet smell drifted underneath his nose that perked his interest.

The smoke smell was getting stronger; she must be getting closer to the source. A flash of light appeared in the darkness and she picked up her pace. Woods were nice and all but if there was a house up there… Even better. In a matter of minutes she came upon a clearing, complete with a small log cabin. It looked like the door was open and that where the light was coming from but she couldn’t see anyone yet. Smoke drifted from the chimney meaning someone was home at least. Possible dinner and she grinned.

That sweet smell was a lot stronger now and closer. He stepped off the porch and walked around the house trying to find what was making that scent. 

She walked up to the door and peeked in. No one seemed to be home at the moment, which was fine with her. The fire crackled and sparked drawing her in like a bug to a light. She made sure her feet were semi clean and headed over to the warm blaze that warmed her quite comfortably. A comfy chair was placed conveniently next to it so she curled up in that and waited.

No one was around the house and the smell had almost faded. A pout spread across his lips and he headed back to the front of the cabin. The door was still open as he had left it but the leaves on the patio weren’t. His brow shot up and he stepped inside the house and was forced not to shout in joy. She was asleep on the chair in front of the fire. He didn’t have to see her eyes to know that it was her. A wild grin replaced his pout and he walked quietly over to the chair.

She heard an intake of air that only a human could make and her lip curved up in a smirk. Dinner had arrived. She played the sleeping traveler part to a T and didn’t move a muscle, let the person get closer to her and think she was out cold… 

He was a step away from her, he could see her chest rising with each breath, her smell intoxicating to his senses. “Eve” he said in a drunken stupor under his breath. That woman drove him wild. He reached out to touch her and caress that mass of wavy hair.

She moved quickly grabbing the hand that came towards her and latched onto it and brought it towards her mouth and sunk her fangs in, without looking at who it was. The blood that poured into her mouth was so rich and sweet she let out a moan of ecstasy and released. A masculine groan sounded and she looked up and about fainted. It was him. “Maveric” she whispered and licked her lips and then gasped “Oh god what have I done”  
“Whatever it was, felt amazing” he wrapped his hand around her wrist and pulled her out of the chair and across the room towards the bed. “I’ve been waiting to do this all day.” He pushed her roughly to the bed and pulled off his shirt and threw it to the side. Eve smiled on the bed; she had been craving this also. He crawled on the bed, the muscles on his shoulders bunching each time he advanced towards her.  
“I’ve been waiting also handsome.” She pulled off her tank top and grinned wickedly at him. He seemed so feral at this moment, very strange for a human. Her mouth was watering already. 

Zzzz Zzzzz Zzzz was heard in the distance, she rolled over cursing. Of course the alarm had to go off, just as things were getting steamy. She punched her pillow and then frowned, she didn’t ache anymore. The sheet slid down revealing her bandages, she pried them back from her skin and gasped. Pink scars were puckered on her skin, no longer the angry red gashes they were before she went to sleep. How the hell did that happen?  
A knock sounded on the door “Eve? You awake? Breakfast is ready. You’ll need your energy for shopping today.”  
Sounded like Shawn at the door. “Ya I’m up. I’m going to shower and then I’ll head down.” She climbed out of bed and walked towards the bathroom peeling off the bandages and crumpling them up. The scars still had her slightly shook, not that she would complain to much. She tossed the soiled bandages in the trashcan and stepped into the shower and cranked on the hot water.  
A cold shower should be in order after that dream but her muscles were tight and needed relaxing. The masquerade was about a day away. Today she would get the outfits, take Camy out shopping. Ian was going to set the catering company up, hopefully he would be able to find one on short notice. Ty would set the DJ up for the party. Decorating would be the easy part, and the fun part.  
Several minutes later she stepped out of the shower and wrapped her hair in a towel and slipped on a simple nightgown and headed down the stairs to the kitchen. She could hear chatter coming from the kitchen as the guys sat around the table eating breakfast. She stood in the doorway and leaned on the frame, it was quite a scene in the kitchen. Pancake batter was all over the place, looks like someone besides Ian tried cooking. The guys were all smiling and shoveling food into their mouths and talking at the same time.  
“Better get some food before it’s all gone.” Kyle said around a bite of pancake. He pushed a plate full of pancake towards her and she walked into the room and sat down next to him and speared a pancake with a fork.  
“Want some OJ? Freshly squeezed.” Shawn said and poured her a glass before she said yes. She raised her brow, the boys were being super nice this morning.  
“What’s going on? Who are you and what have you done with the real Shawn and Kyle?” she took the glass of OJ and took a sip of it while eying them suspiciously.  
“Who us? Were not up to anything. Just want to make sure you’re well fed.” Shawn said innocently.  
“Can it Shawn she knows us better. Can you invite Celeste to go shopping? And can we please tag along?” Kyle dragged that please out like a little kid would when crying for candy. Both of them were giving her big puppy or wolf eyes and quivered their lower lips some.  
She started laughing “Boys, I already told you, this is a girls only trip. You’ll see them soon enough. I need you guys to start cleaning around her, maybe if you’re good I’ll bring her for dinner tonight.” She took another bite of the delicious pancake while watching their mouths flop at her turn down.  
“Place will be sparkling! Please bring Camy tonight!” Shawn said and stood up already picking up the guys dishes even though there was still food on them.  
“Shawn what the hell! I’m still eating that.” Seth said and grabbed his plate back from him.  
Eve smiled at the banter and stood up and left the room hopefully unnoticed. She needed to get dressed and then call around setup a meeting with a dress designer and if Camy didn’t call her in a few hours then she would pay a house call to her. She managed to get to her room without any interruptions and headed to the closet to pick out something comfortable and cute. A pair of jeans and a cute blouse seemed good enough for her.  
She headed to her office which was adjacent to the bedroom and turned on her computer. A quick search through local fashion designers she had a list of numbers to call. She dug out her cell phone from her purse that was on the desk and started calling the businesses. Rejection after rejection had her started looking glum. A few more places to call and then she was going to have to look elsewhere.  
“Marla Designs how can I help you?”said a very snobbish sounding voice on the other end of the phone.  
“Hi I was wondering if you had any appointment spots open today to look at evening gowns?” Eve said crossing her fingers hoping that this place was open since this was one of the last two people she had to call.  
“I’m sorry were all booked. People usually call months in advance to book an appointment with Marla.” A very snobbish answer to match the voice.  
“Thank you anyways.” And Eve hung up the phone, what a bitch she thought to herself. Here’s hoping the last number was successful. She dialed the number and waited patiently while it rang.  
“Thank you for calling Ellegant, how can I help you today?” came a very sweet and cheery voice.  
“You can be my lifesaver and tell me you have an open appointment for today.” Eve said in her most desperate, sweet cheery voice.  
“Well then you’re in luck! We had someone cancel today so Elle is available. Is 2 o’clock ok with you?”  
“You are a lifesaver! 2 is perfect for me! My name is Eve Conner by the way and I will be bringing along my friend named Camy and her son if that’s ok.”  
“Perfectly fine Eve. We’ll see you in a while then!” Eve hung up the phone with a smile on her face. It was 11 now so there was still plenty of time till the appointment. She would need to look up the address and get directions there since she had never heard of the place before. Maybe she should see if Camy would want to go a bit earlier and grab some lunch in town.  
“Eve where are you?” came Shawn’s voice from the bedroom.  
“In here Shawn.” She grinned and started walking towards the bedroom to meet him. She was in a good mood since she found a fashion designer on such sort notice.  
“Your awfully bubbly right now, what’s up?” Shawn said with a smile.  
“I am just one of the luckiest girls right now. I found a designer on late notice. Just need to locate a mask designer also and that will be it for the outfit part of the party. I hope Ty gets a DJ setup and Ian a caterer.”  
“Things will work out Eve. If you need me to do anything just let me know. I’m itching at the bit here till the party, I want to see Camy, get to know her. Please let me come today.” He looked at her with such a sad face.  
“Aw hun, trust me on this please. Practice a little patience and you will see her soon and it will be all worth it.” She patted him on the cheek and smiled “Just wait and see”  
He let out a heavy sigh “Fine. I don’t like it, but fine. Give me something to do though, I’m going nuts here.”  
“Help me look for a place that makes custom masks.” She headed back to the office “I’ve got some time to burn beforehand and if I can take care of the masks today also that would be perfect.”  
He smiled, “I can help with that, hand me a phone book or a computer.” He sat on the chaise lounge and propped his feet up and relaxed.  
“I get the laptop, you use the old fashion way and watch out for paper cuts,” she laughed and tossed him a phone book.  
They spent the next few minutes in silence as they both looked for places to get masks. She had an idea what she wanted her ensemble to look like, she just hoped she would be able to put it together in this short amount of time.  
“Will you at least let me know what color her dress will be or style so I can try to match hers?” he said after a while.  
“I can probably do that. Stop stressing about it hun, she’s going to love ya. Found anything yet?”  
“It’s a phone book. I will be lucky if I find something besides a pizza ad, Sorry not much help.”  
The door to the office swung open and Seth walked in, “What are you all up to? I thought you were going shopping Eve.”  
“I have an appointment with a fashion designer at 2. Were looking for someone who makes masks now and not having a lot of luck.”  
He walked over to the desk “Give me your phone, I know someone.” Eve passed him her cell phone and smiled. He dialed a number and waited while it rang.

“Hey Jasper, it’s Seth. I’ve got a favor to ask. My girl Eve is throwing a masquerade party and needs some masks made up.” A moment of silence passed and Seth nodded his head and smiled “Thanks man I knew I could count on you.” He handed the phone back to Eve, “There, all taken care of.”  
Eve jumped up and gave him a hug “Thanks so much!” she gave him a big kiss and moved over to Shawn and gave him a kiss also “Thanks for trying hun!” Everything was coming together nicely. She still had to decorate but since she knew what she was going to do it wouldn’t be that hard. While she was out shopping today she would get the material needed to decorate the room.  
Seth took a pen and wrote down the address for the place and handed it to her, “I’ve know Jasper for a while now, he makes custom masks and has a large stock of already made ones. I’m sure you will find something you like in his collection. If you want call me when you’re ready to head there and I will meet you there. I’ve been meaning to see Jasper.”  
Eve thought about it for a minute and frowned, “I don’t want to stop you from seeing your friend but I’m not letting Kyle or Shawn come along.” She looked over at Shawn and gave a weak smile “You can go see him but I won’t be calling you.”  
Seth shrugged his shoulders, “Works for me. So are the rest of the guys going to have to pick their masks out? Do we need to get all fancy dressed up like costumes or are tuxedos ok?” his lips had curled in distaste when he said costumes.  
Eve laughed, “Tuxedo’s are fine. You all can either pick your own mask’s or I pick them out.”  
Shawn stood up “I prefer to pick mine out. I’ll go with you to meet up with Jasper if you don’t mind Seth.”  
“That’s fine with me. Let’s leave Eve to plan out the rest of her day and see what the rest of the guys are up to.” And he and Shawn left the room leaving Eve alone.  
Some time had passed but not enough. She wondered how Crimson Cocktails was coming along with her concoction. A phone call would answer her questions, maybe a call to Mr. Archer himself. She glanced longingly at her phone, a card was somewhere with his phone number. It would be so easy to call him, so tempting. Get a grip, she told herself, you’re making the guys wait to see their girls you can wait also. She grabbed her purse and headed downstairs where everyone else was.  
There was a ruckus coming from the game room so she headed in that direction. The guys seemed to be enjoying a game of pool when she walked in.  
“Wanna play a game? Were just about done here with our game.” Ty said as he knocked in a ball.  
Kyle was leaning on his pool stick as Ty kept knocking balls in, “Ya it’s almost over here, Ty here wont let me play.”  
Ty let out a roar of laughter and sunk the black 8 ball in the left corner pocket. “You want to play with me or someone else?” he grinned wickedly at her.  
“Just rack em up Ty and stop your blabbering.” She retorted and walked towards the pool table and selected a stick that fit her grip. Ty piled all the balls into the rack and set up the table then hung the rack. “Do you want to go first mister hotshot?”  
He grinned at her and bent over to line up the cue and Eve slided up next to him and smacked him on the rear just as he shot and missed everything. She laughed hysterically “My turn.”  
“No fair Eve that was cheating!” Ty said huffily.  
“Me? Cheat? I have no idea what you’re talking about Ty! Your ass just looked so tempting I had to smack it. I didn’t know you were shooting already, my apologies hun.” She smiled innocently and took aim. She broke the triangle and knocked in a solid ball and sent him a wink. She knocked in another solid ball and missed on the next try.  
“You little she-devil. Stay right there and don’t move a muscle.” He took aim and knocked in a stripe ball and smiled at her “Game on toots” he knocked in two other balls and moved over to her side so he could take aim. “Don’t even think about it Eve Conner.”  
“Geez Ty your no fun.” Eve crossed her arms and smirked at him, when he took aim she looked away innocently and reached out with her foot and tapped him on the leg causing him to miss his next shot.  
He growled low at her and then smiled “Your such a cheater Eve. Take your shot.” He stepped back from the pool table and watched her sink two more balls in and on her third attempt he smacked her on the rear in return but she still sunk the ball.  
“Nice try hun. Takes more than that to distract me.” She sunk one more ball and missed on the next. “That’s 6 for me Ty, and only 3 for you, slacker.” She grinned and moved away from the table. “I’ll behave this time.”  
“You behave? That’s the biggest lie I’ve ever heard.” He took aim and knocked in a ball as Eve stood off to the side grinning wickedly. “I still don’t trust you missy.” He knocked in two more balls, they were both even at this point, 6 for 6. He looked at her and raised a brow as if challenging her to try and mess him up.  
“I said I wouldn’t mess you up and I wont, now hurry up and shoot.” She looked away impatiently and tapped her foot.  
Ty grinned and knocked in the last stripe ball. “Do you want to call the last shot or just play?”  
“Call the last shot, makes it interesting.” She grinned and stepped closer to the pool table.  
“8 ball in middle left pocket. Stay where you are, don’t take another step.” He pointed a finger at her and scowled before taking aim.  
Eve huffed and crossed her arms “Fine. I hope you miss just so I can beat you.” She said as he shot at the 8 ball. The ball ricocheted off the right wall and headed for the pocket he called but bounced off of the corner of it missing the shot. “Ha! My turn!” she sashayed over to the table and took aim and easily knocked in her last solid ball. “8 ball in bottom left corner.” She grinned and blew Ty a kiss and knocked the ball in. “Well that was fun! I had a great time beating you.” She put the stick on the table and walked over to him and gave him a hug.  
“Besides the cheating, it was a good game. Did that burn some time for you?” he returned her hug and planted a kiss on her forehead.  
Eve looked at her watch, “It did. I’m going to go by Camy’s place and see if she wants to do lunch before we meet with the fashion designer.” She turned to the rest of the room where the some of the guys were playing Gears of War or boxing on the Wii and said “You boys can either pick your own mask or if you don’t want to just let me know so I can get one for you.”  
“Feel free to get mine.” Kyle said over the video game noise.  
“Mine to Eve.” Ian said as he punched out his opponent in Wii.  
“I don’t trust you in pool but I trust you in judgment for mask picking so feel free to get mine hun.” Ty said.  
“Seth and I are going to go by today so we’re covered.” Shawn said with a grin on his face.  
“That settles it, 3 guy’s masks to pick up. I’m off boys, behave yourselves today and see you all when I get home.” She picked up her purse from where she had set it down and headed out the room, she dug her keys out and headed to the garage. Several minutes later she was pulling into Camy’s driveway. She parked the car and flipped down the visor to make sure her makeup was ok. Hopefully the woman wouldn’t freak out and back out when she knocked on the door.  
A tap sounded on her car door and she jumped some and then opened the door revealing the cutest little boy she had seen with dirt smudges on his clothes and on his cheek. “You’re the lady from yesterday right?” he said as he tried to wipe the dirt off his cheek.  
“You must be Caden. Yes I’m the lady from yesterday, do you remember what me and your mommy talked about?”  
He looked off into the distance for a minute thinking very hard and then turned his gaze back to her with a huge smile “You were gonna buy me ice cream if I behave!”  
She smiled at him “Cute and smart! Where’s your mom at now? Can you take me to her?” she stood up out of the car and shut the door.  
“Sure!” he grabbed her hand and tugged for her to follow him around the backside of the house. Her stomach clenched, she wished she could have a little boy as sweet as this and found herself very jealous of Camy. “Mom!” he yelled very loudly “The lady from yesterday is here! She said she would buy me ice cream!”  
Camy was working in a small private garden, which looked like herbs and vegetables and stood up and smiled at Eve “I was going to call you in about an hour. Were a little messy for shopping. Caden go wash up please.” She dusted her hands off on her apron and walked over to where Eve was as Caden ran inside the house.  
“I got us an appointment scheduled at 2 with a local fashion designer and have a place that makes masks lined up also afterwards, so we have time. I was going to see if you wanted to grab lunch before hand.” Eve said.  
“Was going to make lunch actually if you would rather join us for that. Then I’d like to change out of these work clothes and we can head to the city. So come on into the house with me.” Camy said as she gathered up the herbs and vegetables she had picked.  
A few tomatoes rolled out of her hand and Eve stepped forward and picked them up “Sounds delicious. Let me know what I can do to help out.” She followed Camy inside the house and took a look around.  
The house was decorated in a relaxed style. Giant plush chairs were placed next to a custom built bookcase. Several drawings were in frames and placed on the shelves, clearly those done by Caden. Vases full of wildflowers were scattered about the place adding color and a homey touch to the house. There was a coffee table in front of the couch with a few romance novels and children’s books.  
“Your house is lovely and it smells heavenly in here!” Eve said with a smile on her face.  
“You’re being nice, the house is a mess. As for the smell it’s either lunch or the chocolate I made earlier.” Camy said blushing slightly and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.  
“You make chocolate? You’re every woman’s dream! Got any for me to sample?” Eve said enthusiastically.  
Camy smiled “As a matter of fact I do have a piece you can try. The rest is for a customer.” She headed towards the kitchen, which was full of stainless steel appliances and a vast amount of counter space. A giant kitchen-aid mixer sat on an island in the middle of the kitchen and pieces of paper were taped up to the cabinets with what looked like hand written recipes. She opened up the fridge and took out a piece of chocolate that was resting in a small gold foil wrapper and handed it to Eve.  
Eve reached out and took the delicate chocolate “So do you have a business?” she unwrapped the chocolate and popped it into her mouth. It slowly melted on her tongue dissolving into bursts of milky chocolate and an almost flowery taste, something she hadn’t had before in chocolate. “Oh my gosh what is that? Its amazing!”  
“Rare Delights is the name of my product. The other taste is honeysuckle nectar.” A blush crept over her face at the praise.  
“I love it! I would ask for you to make some for the party but I want you to attend as a guest not as a worker, but definitely will be asking for some more of these. Rare Delights indeed.” Eve licked her finger and smiled in joy. Her phone started buzzing “Pardon me for a minute while I take this.”  
“Oh sure no problem. I’m going to start on lunch.” She turned around and pulled out a cutting board.  
Eve walked over to the dining table and pulled out a chair she didn’t recognize the number “Hello?”  
“Is this Eve Conner?” came a rumbling voice on the other end of the line that made her pulse speed up.  
“This is she. Mr. Archer how can I help you today?” she said huskily.  
“So you recognized my voice. I hope I haven’t caught you at a bad time Eve.”  
“Does Crimson Cocktails have any news for me? Or is this a friendly call?” she said the first part slightly under her breath not wanting Camy to hear.  
“Both if that’s ok with you Eve. The team came up with something we’d like for you to try and see if it helps any. On the friendly personal note I had the strangest dream with you in it last night.”  
Eve’s eyes widened and she looked over at the kitchen where Camy seemed to be chopping up carrots and stood and walked over to the back door. “Strange dream huh? Wanna tell me about it?” she held her breath in anticipation.  
“You sound as though you had a dream also. There was a cabin and you bit me. It was so erotic. Sorry if it’s to much information.” He sounded out of breath on the phone.  
Eve almost dropped the phone. That was too weird. She remembered her scars and started to breath heavily. “You don’t say. Sounds fascinating Mr. Archer. I have to confess, I had a similar dream involving you. When can I go by and pick up the sample product?”  
“Whenever you have a chance. You ok? You sound a little funny.”  
“I’m fine. I’ve got to go, I wont be able to come today but possibly tomorrow. You are coming to the masquerade right?” she nibbled on her lower lip some after she asked the question.  
“Tomorrow would work perfectly and I can’t wait for the masquerade event. See you tomorrow Eve.”  
She closed the phone and headed back to the kitchen trying to catch her breath. “Sorry about that, didn’t mean to take so long on the phone. Need any help with lunch?”  
“Sure if you want to finish chopping up these tomatoes for the salad. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop but isn’t Crimson Cocktails that synthetic blood company?”  
Eve’s face heated up and she took a deep breath “Yes. It is.” She left it at that and hopefully Camy wouldn’t press, some people weren’t so keen on the whole vampires exist in the world idea.  
“I’m sorry, you may think me nosey but I’m just curious in nature. Why would you be talking with that company? Do you have a condition of some sort?” Camy had an inkling of what was going on but wanted to hear Eve admit it herself.  
“I understand I would be nosey also. Ya I have a condition of some sort. I’ll be honest, I really like you Camy and I hope this doesn’t ruin things. I’m a vampire. I don’t go preying on humans though that’s why I’m working with the company.” She hung her head and waited for the screaming to ensue.  
“Vampire huh. Well there go all my theories I had about vampires. As long as you don’t munch on my son or myself you’re welcome. I’m open to new things, you have to be to be a chocolatier.” She smiled at Eve.  
Eve let out the breath she had been holding and smiled back “Well I feel like a load is off my chest. Feel free to be as nosy as you want to be. So besides salad what else is for lunch?”  
“Mom! I’m hungry!” Caden said as he came barreling into the room in a fresh set of clothes and a clean face.  
“Well Mr. Hungry nice to meet you, have you seen my son around here?” Camy grinned and set a bowl of fresh chopped lettuce over by Eve and put her carrots in with it.  
“Mom stop being silly I’m your son” Caden stuck his tongue out at her and opened up the fridge and pulled out a juice box.  
“Eve you want to put the tomatoes in there and then I’ll pull out the meatloaf.” She opened up the oven and the smell of meatloaf wafted out making Eve’s mouth water. Eve moved and dumped her diced tomatoes into the salad and tossed it so everything mixed in together. Camy set the meatloaf on the island and turned to wash her hands. “Caden set the table please.”  
He moved over to a drawer and pulled out forks and headed to the table and put them down and then went over and grabbed some paper plates that were in a basket shelf next to the island and put them on the table. “All done mom.” He pulled out a chair and sat down and grabbed his fork “My mom makes the best meatloaf ever, its got cheese in the middle so its really nummy.”  
Eve smiled “It smells very delicious, make sure you save some room for ice cream this afternoon.” She carried the salad over to the table and sat down.  
Camy brought the meatloaf over and sat down, she passed a slice over to Eve and a small piece for Caden. Cheese oozed out of the middle and pooled onto the plate and the rich smell drifted past her nose making her smile.  
Maveric set the phone down on his desk. He had debated for quite a while if he should call her or not. He wanted to hear her voice but didn’t want to seem too desperate. The dream still haunted him and what was the strangest thing he had two small circular scars on his wrist. The place where Eve nibbled on him, well nibble was to light a word, but that’s what he was going to call it. He brushed the notion of dreams being real and delved back into the stack of paperwork that was on the desk. A knock sounded on his office door and he looked up.  
“Hey man, mind if I come in and chill for a bit? Grace called me and chewed me out and feeling slightly glum.” Marcus stood in the doorway, leaning on the frame and looking like the world had piled on thousands of pounds on his shoulders.  
“Sure buddy. Hey how bout we take off from work? Go grab some cold ones and look for something for that masquerade party. I’m sure that Eve has some delicious girlfriends that will be at that party that you can hook up with.” He grinned at Marcus, hoping the last comment would bring a grin out in response.  
A small smile crept on his face, “Sure why not. You really think so? Masquerade right? I’ve got an idea for a mask. Black and oranges.”  
“You’re too obvious man.” Maveric stood up and grabbed his car keys, “let’s book it before we get held up.” They walked out of the office and Maveric locked the door behind him and they headed down to the garage.  
The elevator ride was silent with soft elevator music playing in the background. It stopped on a lower floor and a couple of female interns entered the cart and batted their eyelashes at the men, sending sly smiles.  
Marcus looked over at Maveric and rolled his eyes. “So got your eyes set on that girl huh?” one of the girls turned slightly towards them in anticipation of where the conversation was heading “She’s pretty hot for a bloodsucker.” The girl’s eyes went wide and then a blush crept over her face when she realized that they weren’t talking about her.  
“Shut up Marcus. The bloodsucker has a name, and she invited you to the party also so try not to make an ass of yourself when your there just because she’s a vamp.”  
The door slid open and they exited, leaving the two interns looking heartbroken. “I wasn’t planning on being an ass. I’m actually looking forward to the party. I had a dream last night about a chick with long blonde hair wearing a mask. Hope it’s a good sign.”  
“What is it with all the dreams going on?” Maveric said a little under his breath. They headed over to his car and he unlocked the doors and slid into the seat. “Besides blonde hair and a mask, what else was noticeable about her?”  
“Her eyes were hazel, with smoky makeup done around them. Her dress, hot damn, her dress, made to fit her curvaceous body and leave a man drooling.” Marcus closed his eyes picturing her.  
“Sounds like you had a good dream there.” Maveric said and smiled, glad that Marcus seemed to be no longer thinking of Grace.  
“Well, it sort of was… I never got a name and never saw her face. So I’m definitely wanting to attend this masquerade party to see if she is someone real or just a vivid dream.”  
“Well best of luck there buddy. Maybe you’ll get luck and she will be real.” He started the car up with a roar and they pulled out of the garage and headed downtown to the shopping district. His mind mulled over the possibilities of that night and what could happen. He couldn’t wait to see her, see what kind of outfit she was wearing, and get a chance to taste her lips. Damn that woman for invading his mind and putting him under a spell, he couldn’t get her out of his mind or out of dreams, though he definitely wanted her in his bed.  
“So why can’t I do black and orange? I really like the colors.” Marcus said grumpily changing the subject.  
“Do whatever you want man, but I’m telling you, black and orange is to obvious. Unless you want to be obvious, then by all means go for it.” Maveric rolled his eyes and pulled into a shopping square which had a lot of popular stores in it.  
“And you? What are you going to do for your mask and colors? Wow, I just realized how gay we sound right now. So see any naked chicks lately?” Marcus said and laughed.  
Maveric started laughing as he parked the car “Leave it to you to bring the gayness out in something. And I saw a naked chick in my dream.”  
“So you’re having women dreams also huh. Glad I’m not the only one having them, man I really hope she’s out there.”  
“Ya you said that already buddy. Let’s get this shopping out of the way so we can go get some food and drinks, I’m starving.”

 

“Let’s get this show on the road big boy” Camy said as she helped Caden put his sneakers on.  
“Were still getting ice cream right?” he said as he attempted to tie the shoe laces on his own.  
“Yes we are handsome,” Once Caden’s shoes were on they all headed outside and piled inside Eve’s car after transferring the car seat from Camy’s car over to hers. They pulled out of the driveway and headed off.  
“So I scheduled us a meeting with a designer at Ellegant for a chance they will have something on stock that we can buy or maybe get something designed but I highly doubt that since we only have a few days to the party.”  
“Sounds decent to me. It’s been ages since I’ve gotten glammed up, I think I need something like this.”  
Caden sat in the backseat looking at one of the books that Camy had packed in his backpack, if it had fire trucks and police cars in them he was as happy as could be. A happy Caden equaled silence in Camy’s ears. They rode in silence for a while till they got into the city district and Eve had Camy pull up directions to Ellegant.  
“There is a tom-tom in the glove compartment in you want to pull it out and put in the address so we can get there in time.”  
Camy opened up the glove compartment and pulled out the tom-tom and put in the address that Eve had written down on a scrap of paper. “Looks like Ellegant is just about three blocks away. I’m kind of nervous, what if she doesn’t have anything that will fit me?”  
Eve glanced over at her, “Honey, with a figure like yours I’m positive she will. What street do I turn down?”

Camy blushed and looked down at the GPS and pressed the play button which read off directions in a mock British accent. “Looks like it’s the next block coming up with a turn to the left.”  
Eve put her blinker on and moved into the other lane and prepared to turn, and as soon as she turned she saw the sign for Ellegant in scrolling emerald green cursive font. A car was just pulling out in front of the store so she quickly snagged it before anyone else could. “Front row parking spot!” She cried out in delight.  
“Are we getting ice cream now?” Caden pitched in from the back seat, “I’ve been a good boy on the way over here.” He had a huge grin on his face.  
Camy twisted in her seat and looked at him “Yes you were a very good boy, but no ice cream yet, after we find dresses then we will go get some ice cream.” She laughed when he scrunched his face up and crossed his arms.  
“Fine, but I want double scoops if I have to sit there while you try on clothes.” He raised his brow as he tried his hand at negotiating.  
Eve laughed at his facial expressions through the rearview mirror “Deal little man. You can have double scoop and as many toppings as your mom will allow.”  
His face brightened up “Well what are we waiting for? Let’s hurry up already, I want my ice cream!”  
They exited the car and headed for the gilded entrance doors. The window displays had on gorgeous frothy dresses that looked like fairy tale princess gowns. Eve and Camy glanced at each other and smiled, this store looked promising.  
“Welcome to Ellegant! You must be Eve Conner my 2pm appointment if I’m not mistaken,” came a sweet voice from behind the cash register. Eve glanced over and saw a gorgeous woman with long golden tresses down to her waist, her hazel eyes sparkled with delight. She walked over to them and held out her hand “My name is Elle Kingsley, owner of this little hole in the wall store.”  
Both Eve and Camy shook her hand and in turn introduced themselves and Caden. “I wouldn’t say hole in the wall Miss Kingsley, looks like your business is doing pretty good, and your window displays were gorgeous.” Eve said as she eyed the rest of the store and the plush interior and lavish gowns.  
“Oh please call me Elle, and you caught me. I manage just fine here, well come on in and have a seat and let’s see what we can do for you.” Elle led them over to a sitting area with plush black leather chairs. “Caden if you’d like I believe I have some Legos around here somewhere if you’d like to play with those while your mom tries on clothes.”  
Caden eyes lit up and he nodded his head enthusiastically, he had a few toys packed in his bag but always enjoyed Legos and building things.  
Elle pressed the button on her ear piece, “Maddy can you find the Legos that were in my office and bring them out here? Thanks” She looked towards Eve and Camy “So tell me what you have in mind, and I may have something in stock.”  
Eve smiled and counted her blessings that she was able to find this place and that the owner was such a doll. “Well I’m hosting a masquerade ball, which I’d like to invite you to as well for helping us out on such short notice. I'm looking for something in black and silver, possibly lace up in the back as well.” She dug out an invitation and handed one to Elle.  
“Thank you so much for inviting me. I’d love to attend!” She jotted down some notes on her notepad about Eve’s dress and looked towards Camy “How about you darling? What do you have in mind?”  
Camy scrunched her face in concentration, “It’s been ages since I’ve gotten all dressed up for a formal event, but something in blue or green would be nice as far as color goes, for style I’d have no idea what would fit with my body style.”  
“Leave that to me, I am the professional after all.” Elle laughed and stood as another woman walked into the room with a box of Legos in her arms, “Thanks Maddy.” She took the box of Legos and set them down in front of Caden “Here you go handsome, enjoy them.”  
Caden smiled up at her “Thank you mam” and dug into the box of brightly colored blocks.  
“Well you ladies sit back and relax, I will be back in a bit with a few selections for you to try on.” Elle said as she whirled away to go sort through her collections. The girls leaned back in their chairs and chatted away about the upcoming party while they waited for her to return…

 

Maveric and Marcus sat at a table enjoying some cold beers and watching a game on the flat screen. They had both gotten masks and new ties for the masquerade party. Maveric’s mind kept drifting off towards Eve and wondering what she was up to. He wanted to call her, just to hear her sultry voice over the phone but didn’t want to come off as a stalker. Though that’s what he felt like doing at the moment.  
“Earth to Mav, did you even hear anything I said?” Marcus said as he took a swig of his drink.  
Maveric looked at him with a blank expression “sorry buddy, what’s up?” he needed to stop drifting off into dreamland in the middle of conversations.  
“I was saying before you rudely interrupted me by daydreaming is, do we need to take anything to this party?” Marcus was always one for party etiquette and making sure he looked good to the host.  
Maveric shrugged his shoulders, “I have no idea man. I suppose a bottle of wine or champagne wouldn’t hurt.” “Already planned on taking champagne. So let me guess, day dreaming about her?” Marcus said reading his friends mind.  
“You know me to well, it’s kind of scary. I want to fast forward time already and get to that party. If I could have her alone for just a few moments….” Maveric said trailing off into another fantasy.  
“Snap out of it man, your worse than me. Did the twinkies ever call and bitch you out?”  
Maveric raised his brow, “Twinkies? Oh you mean Jade and Amber. Nah they found another toy while at the party. Thank the heavens. So I can’t believe you went with that mask.”  
“Shut up man. Yours is just as gay. Are you ready to get outta here? I’ve got stuff to take care of and as much as I love staying and drinking this delicious beer I need to get rolling.” Marcus said as he chugged his beer down.  
Maveric swallowed the last bit of his beer and set the empty glass on the table. He looked at his watch “Ya we can get out of here. I’ll take ya back to the garage so you can get your car.” They paid their tab and headed back to Maveric’s car.  
The ride back to the office was uneventful and silent, both men had their minds on women. Maveric thinking of Eve and Marcus thinking about his blonde bombshell that he had yet to meet. The garage at the office was pretty empty so Marcus’s Bugatti stood out pretty well. Maveric slid his car next to Marcus’s, “Take care man.” Marcus got out of the car and unlocked his, the engine roared as he started it up. They both pulled out of the work garage and sped off in different directions. 

 

Elle walked back into the room arms laden with dresses with Maddy following behind her arms full as well. “Maddy place those in dressing room one please.” She dictated as she placed her arm load in the second dressing room. “Camy come on in here and we’ll get you started, Eve dressing room one please.”  
Eve smiled at Camy and stood up “I’m so excited to see what you picked out Elle.” She headed over to the dressing room Elle was standing at eyeing the gowns that had been set out.  
“I’ll let you change, yell if you need any help getting into the dresses.” Elle said as she shut the dressing room door on Eve. She could hear Elle telling Camy the same thing.  
Eve slipped out of her current clothes and into the first dress that Elle had set out. It was a single shoulder style with a full skirt, the color wasn’t quite black but a dark grey with clear Swarovski crystals making intricate designs down the shoulder and across the waist. The back did lace up so she called out to Elle “Can you help me lace this up?” She held the back together as Elle entered the room and turned so she could lace it up, “I love the design on this one.”  
“I’m glad you like it took me days to get the swirls right. There take a look and go show Camy outside she has her dress on already.” Elle gave a last little tug on the ribbons and pushed her outside. Eve saw Camy standing on a raised platform admiring herself in the mirrors. Her dress was the color of the ocean and flowed about her like waves at the sea. Caden had stopped playing with the Legos and was looking in awe at his mother.  
Camy spun around with a smile wide on her face and a sparkle in her eyes. “I don’t need to try on any others, this is the one.” The halter top style of the dress fit perfectly on her shoulders and the dress clung in all the right places giving her an hourglass figure and exposed some leg when the dress swayed revealing the slit going up the front side. “The color was just what I was wanting and I love the style. Eve you look dazzling!” Camy said as she finally noticed Eve’s gown.  
“Me? Dazzling? I pale in comparison to you hun. You look so delicious; you will have guys fighting for all your attention at the party.” Eve thought to herself that Shawn would love this dress. The ocean colors were one of his favorites. “Scoot over and let me see this dress, I’m undecided about it and considering trying on some of the others.” She climbed up on the platform with Camy and looked at herself. The dress was gorgeous but not quite what she was wanting.  
“Might I recommend a gown Eve?” Elle said from behind them, her fingers steepled together and brow scrunched in concentration.  
“By all means go ahead. You’re the master here not me.” Eve said and stepped down off the platform, “Pick whatever out and I’ll try it on. I’ll go ahead and change out of this one.”  
Elle smiled and headed to the back where the racks of dresses were and Eve headed to the changing room. She reached around and managed to catch one of the ribbons and untie the bow and loosen the gown. She wondered what Elle would pick out for her.  
“Eve I’ve got one for you if you’re ready.” Elle said from outside the dressing room. Eve swung the door open a crack and peaked out and saw Elle holding a black dressing bag out to her with a grin on her face. “I have a feeling you’re going to love this one.”  
Eve took the bag and shut the door; she hung it up on the hook and unzipped the bag. Out flowed a Victorian styled dress, it was an off the shoulder style with a black taffeta trained skirt and a crimson bustier overlaid with black lace. Eve let out a gasp; this gown was almost identical to the one she wore to her first masquerade party.  
“Everything okay in there Eve?” Elle called out when she heard the loud gasp. She tapped on the door when she didn’t hear an answer.  
“Sorry, everything is ok. Give me a few minutes and let me put this on. I’ll need help lacing up the back in a minute.” Eve said as she gathered herself and pulled the gown on. Her mind flashed back when she saw herself in the mirror… 

“May I have this dance Cherie?” said a whisper behind her followed by a soft caress along the back of her neck. She closed her eyes and leaned into the warm body behind her and inhaled his woodsy scent. “You can have all my dances tonight” she whispered back.  
He took her hand and spun her around, her skirt made a hissing sound as it swished along the dance floor. His hazel eyes sparkled with mischief behind his black and silver half mask. “You look radiant tonight, incase no one has told you yet.”  
She batted her lashes at him grateful that the mask she wore was covering her blushing face, “You flatter me to much Riley.” She bent low as he dipped her and tried to control her beating heart when he brought her up again and brushed his lips against hers. She was still stunned that he had invited her to the masquerade party and that he was showering her with all his attention.  
The night flew by in a whirl, dance after dance, and no rest for her weary feet. The adrenaline though kept her going and the close encounters with his lips kept her pulse racing and heart pumping fast. Later that night she learned the true reason of his invitation and his affections….

Eve shook her head and cleared her mind, she hadn’t thought of Riley in ages. It may seem strange that her maker not cross her mind, but she preferred it that way. He left her for dead one night and if it hadn’t been for Ty she may as well be dead.  
“Earth to Eve, you ready yet?” Elle said tapping on the door again. Eve blushed and opened up the door “Sorry I zoned out there for a bit, memories have a tendency to do that to me.” She moved to the side to let Elle in.  
“Not a problem hun. Turn around and let me lace this up for you. I can tell by your face that this is a winner. I had a feeling you would be Victorian style. Go show Camy now.”  
Eve walked out of the dressing room, enjoying the feel of the soft drag of the taffeta on the floor. Camy had already changed back to her normal clothes, her face still lit up from earlier, she looked at her and her jaw dropped “Buy it. If you don’t, your brain damaged.”  
Eve smiled at her and did a twirl “I was planning on buying it as soon as I unzipped the bag. You don’t have to tell me twice. Alright let’s ring these up and go mask shopping and then ice cream for the munchkin.”  
Caden’s head whipped up at the mention of ice cream “I’ll pick up my toys and get ready mom!” He immediately stopped playing and started putting the Legos back into the box.  
Eve headed back to her dressing room to change back to her normal clothes. They still had a lot to do today and time was running out…

 

Maveric relaxed on the couch watching the latest news on the television. He was holding his mask in his hand and slipping in and out of day dreams. The masquerade ball was dancing in and out of his mind. He wanted to be dancing with her already, have her wrapped in his arms and close to him. His cellphone started ringing so he reached over and picked it up.  
“I can feel you thinking about me and it’s slightly disconcerting, but arousing at the same time” came her soft and sensuous voice through the phone.  
“You find it disconcerting? I would too if I knew someone was thinking thoughts about me, especially if they are dirty thoughts.” He chuckled low into the phone wishing he could see her instead of talk to her.  
“Maveric what am I going to do with you?” Eve said laughing softly, “So what time should I come tomorrow to try out the synthetic cocktail?”  
He smiled, “Do what you want with me. Anytime you want is good. If you want to come tonight I could arrange a private meeting.”  
“Sorry my night is already booked. Today has been booked solid actually, but good news found my dress and mask already. Still need to decorate the house, but that shouldn’t be a problem.”  
Maveric pouted some, so much for trying to see her tonight. “So you spent the day shopping then? I did some shopping myself to bad I didn’t bump into you. So what kind of dress did you get? See through and naughty?”  
“My my, someone is in a naughty mood. You need to behave yourself there. No it’s not see through, you will just have to wait and see.” She wished she could encourage his attitude and be there in front of him. “I have to get going now but I will see you tomorrow.”  
“Tomorrow then, I can’t wait.” He ended the call and put the phone back. That woman was going to drive him mad. He sat up and headed over to his bedroom; he stood in the doorway and sighed, the empty bed just wasn’t appealing to him. Sleep beckoned to him though and he must respond to its summoning’s. It would do him good to catch up on sleep and maybe he could have a wild dream again.  
Eve Conner would be his one day; he would make sure of that. He would let her know his intentions at her masquerade party and taste those sweet lips of hers again. He slid into bed and took his ring off and gazed at it. The emerald eyes twinkled at him, as if trying to communicate and tell him a secret. He kissed the ring and set it on his nightstand and pulled the covers around him and embraced sleeps hold. 

 

She finished hanging up the last of the organza material and climbed down the ladder to admire her handy work. The dining room and living room had been cleared and transformed into a ballroom of sorts. What she had pictured in her mind earlier with the draping fabrics and the candles had been achieved.  
“It looks amazing babe. DJ has already been booked and Ian has a caterer lined up already.” Ty said as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.  
She leaned into his embrace and smiled, “You said that Ian booked a caterer already? Do you know who?” Just when she had finished speaking Ian walked into the room with his apron wrapped around his waist and a smudge of something red on his face.  
“You’re going to love the name, Carnal Creations. Talked to a Simone and we have everything all setup. I’m actually going to meet her for brunch tomorrow to discuss final touches” He wiped his face off with his apron when he caught a glimpse of himself in one of the mirrors, “Room looks amazing Eve, you outdid yourself.”  
Eve grinned “I certainly did. Well enjoy your brunch tomorrow; I’m going to call it a night. These rooms were bigger than I thought they were and climbing ladders up and down has worn me out.”  
“I’ll take care of the ladder, you go crawl into bed missy.” Ty said as he gave her a pat on the rump and sent her in the direction of the stairs.  
Eve climbed the stairs up towards her bedroom, being careful not to stumble and fall down them, she felt so drained all of a sudden. The door was already open so she just stripped out of her clothes and fell into bed without even looking. She was burying herself under the covers as Ty walked into the room.  
“Mind if I join you love?” he said as he pulled off his shirt and pants not really waiting for an answer. He crawled into bed with her and wrapped her in his arms “I never got to apologize for what happened earlier with Seth. I’m so sorry darling.”  
Eve rolled around and nestled in his arms in a spooning position “I forgive you. Now shut up and let me sleep.” The last thing she felt before she drifted into oblivion was Ty’s soft kisses on her shoulder.  
Her dreams were invaded by a stalking tiger chasing her down the beach outside her house. The tiger caught up to her and pounced on her, pinning her down to the sandy ground. Its massive paws were heavy but gentle at the same time, claws careful to avoid her bare skin. Those piercing blue eyes seemed so familiar but so wild and feral. She knew deep down inside that the tiger wouldn’t harm her, she reached up hesitantly to stroke the beasts face and reveled in the delight of his silky fur. The tiger nuzzled his giant head in her small hand and much to her surprise licked her. Sparks flew throughout her body at the innocent gesture and she let out a small moan, watching as the tiger’s eyes grew wide and his feral mouth curved to a grin.  
The silky fur melted away revealing tanned skin and rock hard muscles, slowly revealing the man beneath when her alarm clock went off awakening her from her delicious dream. She let out a groan but then smiled when she remembered she had a meeting with Maveric today.

 

Maveric woke up to his alarm and groaned, he just needed a few more hours of sleep, just a few more hours in dreamland with his green eyed beauty. Today was the day he was going to meet up with Eve though and he perked up at that and swung out of bed. He headed towards the bathroom and preceded to the shower, he wanted to look his best today. It was kind of funny that he was going to primp for a work appointment, but this wasn’t any ordinary client.  
He didn’t waste a lot of time in the shower, he still had to shave off his stubble and trim his goatee. Couldn’t be looking like a bum off the street for his future woman. He grinned at that and lathered up his face with shaving cream. Now that he thought about it he did feel a sense of peace around her. Maybe the family legends were true and this green eyed woman would be his other half. He set about shaving off the stubble and washing the excess cream off his face. A quick dab of Aqua Di Gio on his neck and he headed to his closet to get dressed for the day.  
The TV came on with the timer he had programmed earlier and he took a quick glance at the stock scroller at the bottom and grinned when he saw Crimson Cocktails had increased overnight. He pulled on a midnight blue shirt paired with khaki pants. It took him a few minutes to locate his car keys and then he was off.  
His cell phone rang while he was on the road, Marcus wondering when he was waking up and getting to work, Maveric surprised him by letting him know he was almost at work.  
“Are you feeling sick? You’re never headed to the office this early.” Marcus said in a shocked voice.  
“I do when I have a hot woman coming by my office in an hour.” Maveric smirked as he pulled into the work parking lot.  
“Let me guess, Eve? You’ve been whipped man.” Marcus said jokingly.  
“Laugh it up buddy because your next just wait and see.” Maveric ended the call as he parked his car in his spot and headed towards the elevators to catch a ride up to his office.  
Maveric stepped off the elevator and into the lobby of the office. The main secretary looked up shocked at seeing him there that early and then gave him a sly smile “Good morning Mr. Archer, nice to see you here this early. Can I get you some coffee?”  
“Good morning Alice, don’t worry about any coffee for me, I’m good.” He slunk into his office so he didn’t have to worry about any more interruptions and crazy looks from his coworkers. He sat down in his chair and swiveled around, he felt like a teenager in high school. Time flew by pretty fast as he straightened up his office, though it needed no fixing. A quick glance at the clock revealed Eve would be dropping by in less than ten minutes.

Eve tugged on her skirt some and checked her hair in the elevator door reflections. She spent over an hour straightening her hair and picking out her outfit, the pencil skirt was similar to the one she first wore when she met him and she smiled wickedly at the memory of that encounter.  
The doors slid open and she took in a deep breath and strut into the lobby, her hips swaying gently, the men in the lobby stared and then hastily looked away. The receptionist covered the mouth of the phone “Mr. Archer is ready to see you just go on in.” She smiled and pointed towards his office as if Eve didn’t know where it was.  
Eve put on her serious face and walked towards the door and knocked once and opened it. He was sitting in his chair with a wicked grin on his face. This man was going to get her in trouble.  
“Have a seat please and I will have the samples delivered shortly. How is your day going so far?” He leaned against the desk his eyes roaming her body taking in every inch.  
Eve sat down on the plush chair and crossed her legs very slowly and smoothed out the wrinkles in the skirt. “My day has been pretty decent so far, how about yours Maveric?”  
“It’s been a rush but much better now. I’m looking forward to your masquerade party; I hope you will save a dance for me.” His eyes twinkled and she fought the urge to heave a heavy sigh and swoon at his feet.  
“Of course, you can have as many dances as you want handsome.” She was such a buffoon when around him, why wouldn’t her mouth filter out what her mind was thinking.  
He let out a small laugh and then became somber when a knock sounded on the door, “Come in.”  
The door swung open and a fragile looking man in a white lab coat came in with a tray of test tubes. “Mr. Archer I have the samples you requested.”  
Set them down here Neill and thank you. I will let you know the details in a bit.” Maveric flicked his hand to shoo him out of the room, his eyes focused on Eve. When the man left he gestured to the sample test tubes, “Looks like the are all labeled with what kind of supplement they are infused with. Let me know what you think.” She sampled each of them and gave her feedback, ready for this part to be over so she could move onto better and tastier things. After they had all been tried she leaned back in her chair and crossed her legs “Now that business is done, let’s talk pleasure.” Maveric leaned forward in his chair, his elbow resting on the desk as he tilted his head “Mutual pleasure I hope. I don’t have any meetings for a while, so I’m all yours. Do with me as you wish.” He said that last bit with a sly grin on his face. “My, aren’t you a fast mover. Ever heard of taking it slow? We wouldn’t want to jump the gun to fast.” She winked at him and licked her lips, she was desperately craving to taste his lips on hers. Maveric stood from his chair and slowly walked over to her, prowling almost, like a tiger stalking his prey. “That ship has sailed Eve. You haunt my dreams; I can’t get you out of my mind. If I didn’t know you were a vampire I would say you’re a witch and put a spell on me” he toyed with his ring some while gazing at her “not that I mind though. I quite like having you in my dreams, but I’m growing tired of just dreams and craving the real thing” he lifted her chin and bent down and paused just before her lips “May I?” Eves pulse sped up and she leaned forward and closed the gap between their lips. She had been craving him as well, aching to satisfy that need. His arms slipped around her and pulled her up from the chair as his lips devoured hers, his tongue snaking out and twining with hers. She wound her arms around his back and up to his shoulders, trying to get closer to him. The intensity of what she was feeling by this one kiss was starting to leave her weak kneed. She wanted to taste all of him. Taste not just his lips but his body, gods she could spend all day like this. He spun her around and sat her on the desk and stepped between her open legs. Her arms went back and braced herself on the desk. He wanted to devour her now, push her back and have his way with her on top of his desk. He started to push away paper and clutter off the desk when she pulled back from the kiss and let out a hiss of pain. He looked and instantly saw what happened; his letter opener sliced the side of her hand. “I'm so sorry Eve, I got carried away.” She looked at the cut, it wasn’t that bad, just a small graze, she had had worse, but it had shocked her still. “It’s ok, it’s not like you planned it and I was enjoying every bit.” To emphasize this she hooked her legs around his and pulled him closer to her. “Shall we continue?” “Do you really want our first time to be on my desk?” he chuckled and ran his hand up her thigh “I'm all for it if you are. It’s always been a fantasy of mine.” “As much as I want to, I think we should wait. Kissing and all is great, but we should get to know each other a tad bit more before we do the naked tango” she took a breath and knew what she was about to say would be a deal breaker for him, but didn’t want to shock him at the masquerade party “Like for instance I have five wolves at home that are my lovers” she paused and saw his eyes go wide and his back straighten so she took a deep breath and hurried on “But I’ve got two that have found their mate, well almost, masquerade party is to set them up and set them free to be on their own. The other three I'm working on finding them their one and only. I’ve been missing something lately, the spark that consuming fire and complete feeling of being while. I know I’m rambling but I’m scared that I have just royally fucked things up between us.” She looked down to hide the tears that were gathering in her eyes. Why did she have to open up her mouth and ruin this perfectly steamy session. He took a step back and sat in the chair she had started in. “So you have a harem at home? Of wolves? Wow.” He wasn’t quite sure what to feel, it’s not like they were dating or anything yet so he couldn’t really be to mad, he had kissed her first also in the elevator without really getting to know her. Five though. Damn. “But you’re trying to get rid of them? Is that what I roundabout heard?” She inhaled and nodded her head to all his questions. “In a way, yes. One of them, Shawn, came to me that he found his other half, even though he’s never met her, hence why I am throwing the party. I know she will love him at first sight. Kyle has met his match I believe in Celeste. The others I have a feeling will meet their mates soon. I understand if you want to stop this though.” “To be honest I’m not really sure what to be feeling. I don’t have any rights to say much. I’m shocked, but then again not to shocked, you’re a gorgeous woman Eve, it’s no surprise that men would flock to you. I don’t want to compete though with others. That’s not my style. I don’t think I could be an addition to your harem because I don’t think I could share you like I guess your current guys do.” “I get that… I really do. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I wouldn’t want you to join my harem; as much as I love them I want them to be happy and free from me. My heart can’t take being split up anymore and I think that’s partly why I can’t heal myself anymore. I’ll see myself out now, so I don’t trouble you anymore.” She slid off the desk and straightened out her skirt. “I’d ask you to be patient with me and give me a chance to find them mates, but I don’t expect you to wait.” She started to edge around him and tried to leave before she went into full meltdown mode. She could feel the tears collecting and her heart cracking. He grabbed her wrist and held her. The ring dug into her skin some and twinkled in that nonexistent light again. “Thank you for telling me. I don’t think I would have wanted to found out any other way. It shows you trust me and really care for me. No one’s been that forthcoming in a while.” He looked at the ring and then up at her “I don’t want to lose you Eve. I’ve only just found you and the peace and joy you bring me. I want to see where this takes us, but I refuse to share you. If you’re going to be with me, it’s only me. I'm willing to wait, as crazy as that sounds.” He slid his hand into hers. “I must be a madman and whipped, just as Marcus called it.” He kissed her hand. “Don’t make me wait to long.”


End file.
